Harry Potter and the Trip to Sunnyhell
by Queen of Crystallopia
Summary: Harry Potter didn't think as he shoved Sirius aside and fell into the veil. Now, he finds himself in a new world full of demons, vampires, slayers, and new friends. Can his new friends help him find his way back home, or will he be stuck there forever?
1. Chapter 1: Into the Veil

Harry watched in horror as his godfather fought the deranged death eater, firing back taunts along with spells. "I have to help him," he told Neville, who tried to protest, but Harry was already running towards the battle.

"Stupefy!" he shouted as he stood next to Sirius. Bellatrix smiled as she deflected his curse.

"Oo! Little baby wants to play?" she cackled as she shot more spells at the duo.

"Harry, get out of here! I can handle her," Sirius roared as he brought up a shield to protect his godson.

Harry ignored him as he dodge a cutting hexe and fired off an expelliarmus. Harry ignored the shouts of his friends and godfather as he tried in vain to help him defeat the crazy woman, who laughed hysterically as if they weren't fighting at all.

What happened next was something Harry couldn't explain. They had edged toward the shimmering veil without realizing it. Suddenly, it was as if everything was in slow motion. He saw the words form on Bellatrix Lestrange's lips as she pointed her wand at Sirius. Harry didn't think, he just reacted.

He shoved Sirius aside as a severe cutting hex cut across his chest. He stumbled backwards into the veil, clutching the bleeding wound in pain. Harry saw the horrified faces of the Order, his friends, and his godfather as he began to fall back, the veil flowing over him like a cool jet of water. He saw Bellatrix smiling gleefully while the others shouted his name in terror.

He saw Sirius reach for him, screaming, and he tried to reach for him too as the blackness began to overwhelm him. "Sirius!" he screamed, but no sound came out, and then he knew no more.


	2. Chapter 2: Am I Dead?

Harry became aware of a few things as he regained consciousness. The first was that he was in a lot of pain. The cut across his chest was throbbing painfully, and his whole body felt bruised and sore. This surprised him, because he didn't think that he would be in pain once he died, which he assumed was what had happened.

The second thing he was aware of, once he found the strength to keep his eyes open, was that he was in a boring white room on an uncomfortable bed with an IV stuck in his arm. I must be in a hospital, he thought tiredly. If I am dead, why does it hurt so much, and why am I in a hospital? Where are my parents?

He then became aware of another thing. Sitting in a chair next to him was an older looking man dressed in a tweed suit who had fallen asleep. His glasses had fallen off his nose and into his lap.

Harry cleared his throat, which was surprisingly dry and raw, so the sound that came out was more like a gargle. The man jumped awake, squinted, then placed his glasses back on his face.

"Ah, you're awake," he commented.

Harry tried to speak, but his throat was too dry. The man immediately saw the problem and handed him a glass of water, which Harry took in shaking hands and gulped down gratefully. He cleared his throat again, feeling a little better. "Thanks," he whispered. "Um, I don't mean to be rude or anything, but who are you?"

"Rupert Giles," he answered, looking concerned and curious at the same time.

"Where am I?" Harry asked.

"You're at the hospital. When I found you, you had some pretty extensive wounds, so I drove you here," the man called Giles said.

Harry blinked. "Am I dead?" he asked bluntly.

Giles stared at him for a moment, apparently trying to decipher whether he was serious or not, then smiled kindly. "No, fortunately, you are still among the living."

Harry frowned, processing this information. So, somehow he was still alive and at a muggle hospital. "What city are we in?"

"Sunnydale," the man replied, mirroring Harry's frown.

"Sunnydale?" the boy echoed. "I've never heard of it."

"Well, it's a rather small town here in California. I'm not surprised."

"California?" Harry's eyes widened. "As in, America?"

"Why, yes," Giles frowned. He looked around to see if anyone was near and then leaned closer. "Who are you?"

Nervousness coursed through Harry's veins. Who was this guy? How did he get to America? What was going on? What if this guy was a Death Eater? Of course, Harry reasoned, he wouldn't be asking who Harry was if he was a Death Eater.

"Harry," the boy answered quietly, his eyes guarded. "Harry Potter."

Harry tensed, waiting for the gasp of surprise and the excitement of meeting the boy-who-lived, but nothing happened, no spark of recognition shone in the man's eyes.

"You don't know me?" Harry asked, surprised.

"Should I?" Giles asked.

Harry frowned. This man was definitely a muggle, though why he had chosen to take Harry to a hospital and stay with him was a mystery. What the hell was going on?

"Do you know how you got here, Harry?" Giles asked, wariness in his voice.

"I-I don't know," Harry couldn't meet the man's gaze. In all honesty he had no idea how he was transported to America, though it had to do with that mysterious veil. "Look, thank you for bringing me here and everything, but I'm really tired."

"Of course," the man looked apologetic. "Those wounds were pretty severe." He looked like he wanted to ask more, but simply smiled. "I'll be back later to check up on you."

Harry smiled and turned over on his side, wincing in pain. He had no idea what had happened, but he needed to get out of here. He needed to contact the Order and his friends, to let them know that he was alright.

Giles rubbed his eyes as he waited for Buffy to pick up the phone. Though he had gotten the boy's name, he had not discovered anything else. He had been driving over to the school library to meet the others when it had happened.

A strange vortex of light had appeared in the middle of the road, shooting out wild sparks and thundering loudly. He slammed on the brakes as the vortex shot out a wave of light, blinding him for a moment. When it had cleared, he looked out the front windshield to see the body of a boy lying in the road. He got out, his stake held up warily as he approached the body.

What he had seen had shocked him. The boy looked no older than thirteen, and he was bruised and battered and bleeding freely from a horrible cut on his chest. Giles bent down and felt the boy's pulse, which had been weak, but still there.

He was startled out of his thoughts when a chipper voice on the other line said, "Summer's residence, Buffy speaking."

"Buffy, it's Giles."

"Giles! Thank God, we were all so worried. Angel and I went looking everywhere for you and we panicked when we didn't find you at your apartment. Are you okay?"

"I'm fine," he answered, then proceeded to tell the Slayer what had happened.

"And you don't know who this guy is or anything?" she asked.

"I only got his name, but he is obviously hiding something," Giles answered, looking towards the room where the boy slept.

"Do you think he's some kind of demon?" Buffy asked.

"I'm not sure. He seems like a normal boy, but under the circumstances…" Giles trailed off.

"I should be there, just in case," Buffy told him, sounding worried.

"You should at least finish your classes, Buffy. Snyder is watching you too closely right now. Go to school, I'll manage fine until later. Will you update everyone?"

"Sure thing, Giles. Be careful," the Slayer hung up the phone. Giles did the same and looked at the boy's room. He wasn't sure what was going on, or who this boy was, but he intended to find out.


	3. Chapter 3: Escape

_Wow! I can't believe all the story alerts I have gotten already! I've never written fanfiction before, this is my first. All reviews and comments are appreciated. Thanks so much for reading!_

_Queen_

_Disclaimer: I don't own anything Harry Potter or Buffy the Vampire Slayer_

Harry Potter gingerly sat up, wincing in pain as he did so. He looked out the window, grateful that it was finally night. That day he had avoided questions from the doctors, nurses, and the strange man called Giles, always saying that it hurt too much to talk, which wasn't far from the truth, or that he was tired and ready to fall back asleep.

Harry looked out the door, and seeing no one, began the slow and careful journey to the bathroom. The nurse had told him they had saved his clothes and the "stick" they found in his pocket and placed them in the bathroom cupboard. Harry had been extremely relieved to discover that they had not gotten rid of his wand.

As fast as he could, Harry pulled on his clothes, wincing as he looked at his bloodstained shirt. It would have to do for now. There was no way he was sticking around in this hospital any longer. He couldn't avoid the questions forever, and once they found out that he had no parents, he lived in a different country and had no idea how he got here or how he was injured, he was screwed.

He was just surprised no one from the Order had found him yet. They had to be looking for him. His stomach filled with dread. Unless they think I'm dead, he thought grimly. He shook off the negative thoughts as he exited the bathroom, peeking out to make sure no one was there.

Giles had left his jacket on the chair, saying that he had to run a few errands and would be back that night. Harry pulled on the coat, making sure it covered his bloody shirt, and left the room.

What he wouldn't give for his invisibility cloak! Harry thought of the magic material wistfully before walking in what he hoped was a casual manner towards the elevator. Once the doors of the elevator shut, he breathed a sigh of relief. So far so good.

Harry's plan was simple. He would get out of the hospital, find some way to contact the Order, and then wait in a safe spot for them to come and get him. It sounded easy enough, though he had no idea how he was going to send them a message.

Harry was pulled from his thoughts as the doors opened with a ding and he entered the lobby. He stopped dead in his tracks as he saw Giles accompanied by a young blonde girl and a big, dark guy in a leather jacket wearing a fierce expression.

Harry breathed heavily as he looked around for a place to hide. Luckily, there was a storage closet just to his left and he dove inside. He tried to calm his breathing as he waited for a few minutes. The cut on his chest was throbbing painfully, and he wished he could have gotten some painkillers before running out.

When he deemed he had waited long enough, he peered out, and seeing no one, headed for the exit. Harry held his breath until he had walked out of sight of the medical building and into the chilly night air. He hadn't realized how loud his heart was pounding until now.

He set off in a brisk pace down the sidewalk with no real destination in mind. _Ok,_ Harry thought. _I can't make a portkey or apparate, so those are both out of the question. I don't know where the magical community is or how to get there, so I can't find an owl. Sirius's mirror is back in my trunk at school along with my broom_. Harry sighed. How the hell was he supposed to get some help?

Without thinking, Harry had wandered into a cemetery, lost in his thoughts and wishing desperately that there was someone that he knew with him. A branch cracked to his right, the loud noise ripping into the still air.

Harry jumped and pulled out his wand. A man stepped out from the darkness, but a wave of fear rushed through the boy wizard as he saw his face. No ordinary man had fangs, amber eyes, and a horribly distorted face.

The vampire grinned as he saw the stick in the boy's hand. He growled hungrily as he smelled the dried blood on his clothes. Harry took a step back. "Stay back," he ordered in what he hoped was a brave voice.

The creature snarled and rushed forward. Normally, Harry could have dodged the attack with his quick reactions, but he was exhausted and in pain. The vampire tackled him and pinned him to the ground. Harry hissed in pain and the wand slipped from his hand.

Harry fought the panic that bubbled up inside him as the vampire bent towards his neck, fangs bared.

His hand found his wand again and he felt the fangs scrape against his skin.

"Lumos Maxima!" he shouted, and light flashed through his wand. He closed his eyes and heard the vampire scream in pain.

When Harry opened his eyes, there was nothing there but a pile of dust. He breathed heavily. That was close, too close. the cut on his chest was no throbbing, and when he touched it he cursed as he saw fresh blood seeping out.

Harry stood slowly and brushed himself off. He was about to walk forward when he looked up. His stomach sank as he saw Giles and the two people that had accompanied him to the hospital standing in front of him, shocked expressions on their faces. Damn it, Harry thought. How am I going to explain this?

"H-harry?" Giles stuttered.

"Um," Harry began. "It-it's not what it looks like."

"Not what it looks like? You just dusted a vamp with some flashy thing. I wouldn't call that nothing," the blonde girl had apparently gotten over her surprise.

"You know about vampires?" Harry asked, growing more confused by the minute.

"Of course. What I want to know is how you know about them and what the heck you just did to that one," she put her hands on her hips.

Harry didn't know what to say. Luckily, someone else spoke first. "That was some pretty intense magic you did just there. You mind explaining who you are and where you're from?" the big guy asked.

He felt somewhat relieved. They knew about magic, they must be wizards. Except, they didn't recognize the spell he used, which any fifth year would know how to do. "I'm from England," he said, not sure what he should say and if he could trust these people.

"We never could have guessed that with the accent or anything," the blonde rolled her eyes. Harry blushed and Giles gave her a sharp look.

"Harry, why did you run away from the hospital?" Giles asked.

His stomach sank. "Please don't make me go back there. I can't answer their questions, and I have to find a way to contact my friends."

"Maybe we should take this conversation somewhere a little more private," the pale guy said, looking around.

"Y-yes, I suppose you're right. Harry, will you come with us?" Giles asked.

"Where?" Harry's eyes narrowed distrustfully.

"To the high school library, where we meet," Giles sighed and looked at him kindly. "Look, I know you have no reason to trust us, but right now we are the only friends you have, and we might be able to help you get home."

Harry stared at him for a moment, his thoughts fighting over whether or not he should go with them. Finally, he gave a short nod and followed them down to Giles's car. Harry never let go of his wand.


	4. Chapter 4: Realizations

_Disclaimer: I don't own anything Harry Potter or Buffy the Vampire Slayer_

The last time Harry remembered feeling this uncomfortable was at his hearing at the Ministry of Magic at the end of the summer. He was sitting in an uncomfortable wooden chair and a school library amongst a group of people who he did not know at all and who were all currently staring at him like he was a two headed lion at the zoo.

Giles came out of his office with a first aid kit, his footsteps echoing in the silence. "Here we are, Harry, let's take a look at your cut. It's no doubt been disturbed with that little encounter in the cemetery."

Harry glanced at the others uncomfortably. Giles thankfully noticed. "Ah, yes, well, perhaps we should do this in my office."

Harry followed the man gratefully into the solitude of the tiny office. He sat down and carefully and awkwardly peeled off his shirt, hissing at the burning pain. Giles grimaced as he saw the blood seeping through the bandages. "Just as I thought. The wound has reopened."

He peeled off the bandage and grabbed a cloth and the bottle of alcohol. "I'm afraid this is going to hurt."

Harry nodded. "Nothing I can't handle." After all he had been hurt a lot worse than this before. He bit his lip to keep the gasp of pain from escaping as the man applied the burning liquid on his chest.

"So," Harry gasped, trying to keep his mind off of what was happening. "Who are you people?"

"I beg your pardon?" Giles continued without looking up.

"You know about vampires and magic, so what are you? Wizards? Squibs?" Harry squeezed his eyes shut.

Giles gave him a strange look. "W-well. I'm a Watcher. I've dabbled in magics before, but I have to say that—"

"A what?"

"A Watcher," Giles replied. "for the Slayer, for Buffy."

"Ok, you lost me," Harry opened his eyes and took a shaky breath as Giles opened the new bandages.

"Unto every generation a slayer is born," Giles recited. "She alone will have the power to fight the vampires, the demons, and the forces of evil. None of this sounds familiar to you?"

"Not really, no," Harry put his shirt back on. "Should it?"

"Well, I had thought that a wizard," he paused at the word. "would at least have heard of the Slayer."

"Sorry, no," Harry shook his head. "You said you've dabbled in magic. So you know the basic spells? Where did you go to school?"

"I'm afraid I haven't. I have only done a few spells, but I wouldn't call them basic. They've involved sacrifices and intense ingredients, not to mention extensive amounts of latin."

Harry gaped at him. "S-so you don't know any real spells, like wingarium leviosa, or, or expelliarmus?"

"Come again?" Giles looked at him oddly. "And I assure you the spells I did were very real."

Harry stared at him. Obviously, this was some kind of mistake. What he had thought were a bunch of American wizards were in fact a bunch of muggles who pretended they knew magic spells. How they knew about vampires was beyond Harry, but these people could definitely not help him.

"Ok, whatever you say," Harry stood and inched towards the door. "Look, I really should be going. I don't think this is going to work. But, thanks again for helping me out and everything."

Harry opened the door and jumped back in surprise as a tumble of people fell over themselves.

"Ouch! Oh, brilliant plan Buffy!" the goofy looking kid said.

"Well it was until he came out," the blonde girl sat up.

"Uh, hi," the red headed girl said with an awkward smile on her face. "Nice to meet you. I'm Willow."

He shook her hand. "Uh, hi."

The dark and broody guy was standing in the corner, staring at him. Harry suppressed another shiver as Giles followed him out of the office.

"Harry, I must insist that you stay until we figure out what happened to you," Giles said.

"Look, I really appreciate you trying to help, but unless you have an owl I could borrow or a portkey to Scotland, I really should be going," Harry blurt out as a last hope. If these people didn't know what he was talking about, it proved that they really were a bunch of pretenders.

And of course he was met with blank stares. "What would you do with an owl?" the boy in the brightly colored Hawaiian shirt asked.

"And what's a portkey?" Willow chimed in.

Harry sighed. "I thought not. Thanks again, Giles," he turned to walk out of the library. A sudden thought occurred to him. Of course, why didn't he think of it before. "Wait a second, do you have a phone I could borrow?"

"Y-yes, right here," Giles told him.

Harry rushed to the phone and quickly dialed the number. "Please pick up Aunt Petunia," he muttered as he waited.

"Hello?" a strange voice answered.

"Is Petunia or Vernon Dursley available?" he asked desperately.

"Who? I'm sorry, dear, you must have the wrong number, this is the Smith residence," the woman hung up the phone.

Harry stared at the phone in his hand as his last hope failed him. He knew he had dialed the right number, the Dursley's couldn't have moved, Dumbledore wouldn't have let them do that. Unaware of the odd stares he was receiving, he began to pace back and forth.

Ok, let's think about this, he told himself. First, you fall through the veil and wake up in a muggle hospital in the United States. The Order hasn't come looking for you and you haven't heard anything from them. Aunt Petunia's number didn't work, as a different family lived there. He paused.

"Giles, where exactly did you find me?" he asked.

"W-well," Giles began. "I was driving and there was this vortex of light, when it cleared, you were there. What happened?"

Harry ignored him. A magical vortex of light, the veil, no connection with his friends…what if…no, it couldn't be. He couldn't be in another dimension, another world. That was impossible. Then again, he had no idea what that veil was, and he was still learning things in the magical world that he didn't think was possible before he got his Hogwarts letter.

"Harry?" Giles asked, seeing an answer in the boy's emerald eyes.

Harry sighed and sat down heavily. "I think I know what happened."

_Thanks so much to those who reviewed and added my story! This is a little scary as i am new at writing fanfiction, but I'm glad so many people like it so far. Thanks again! Comments and reviews are appreciated!_

_Queen_


	5. Chapter 5:The Interview and the Stranger

_Disclaimer: I don't own anything Buffy or Harry Potter._

"An alternate dimension" Giles mused. "Fascinating."

"Yeah, sure," Harry said. "But how do I get back?"

"You said you fell through an archway, covered with some kind of transparent veil?" Giles asked picking up a book and thumbing through it.

"Yeah," Harry nodded.

"Do you know the name of it? That would help matters profusely," Giles didn't look up from his book.

Harry shook his head. "Sorry, I was a bit…distracted at the time."

"Ok, so you fell through this veil and ended up here," Buffy looked at him. "So how did you get hurt?"

Harry's face darkened. "It's kind of a long story, but basically, my friends and I were fighting off a bunch of Death Eaters."

"Death Eaters?" Buffy raised an eyebrow.

"Sounds like a cheery bunch," Xander cut in.

"Dark wizards," Harry explained, running a hand through his hair.

"You seem a bit young to be fighting," the pale guy, whose name Harry had learned was Angel spoke softly.

"So do all of you," Harry threw back. "And you guys don't even have magic."

"We hold our own," Willow piped. "Besides, it's mostly Buffy and Angel who do the fighting and that's because Buffy's the Slayer and Angel-" the redhead was silenced with a look. "Because, um, Angel takes all his vitamins and-and eats all his vegetables?"

The others grimaced at Willow's 'casual' cover up. Harry simply raised an eyebrow.

"So what's next?" Buffy asked the Watcher.

"Well, I'm not sure," Giles answered honestly. "For the time being, we have no idea how to get Harry back to his world. I suppose we'll just have to do some research."

Xander groaned and Willow smiled excitedly. Harry felt a pang of homesickness. They reminded him of Ron and Hermione, whose reactions would have been identical.

Buffy and Angel started flipping through books, looking for something on alternate dimensions or the veil, while Willow jumped on the computer. Xander watched helpfully, and Giles sat across from Harry, pen and paper in his hand.

"Harry, I think it would help immensely if you could answer a few questions," he said. Harry squirmed a little uncomfortably as he nodded.

"So, you were in the Department of Mysteries, you said?" Giles looked up at him.

"Yeah, at the Ministry of Magic," Harry nodded.

"And what were you doing there?" he asked, writing down notes.

"Um," Harry really did not want to go into how he had been tricked by Voldemort into getting the prophesy for him, so he had endangered his friends and gotten himself thrown into another dimension. "I don't see how that would help. It's not important."

Harry noticed Angel look up at him for a moment before going back to his book. Giles looked up apologetically. "I-I apologize, Harry. I didn't mean to pry."

"It's nothing. Next question," Harry looked at the table.

"Can you describe the veil? Was there anything unusual about it?" he asked.

Harry closed his eyes in remembrance. "There was a big stone archway, it looked like it belonged to some ancient ruin or something. When we walked by it, I heard whispering coming from this veil. My friends had a bad feeling about it, but I wanted to check it out. That's when the Death Eaters came in."

Harry opened his eyes to see everyone looking at him, then hurry back to pretend they weren't listening. Giles was busy scribbling all of that down.

"And what happened when you fell in?"

"Well, when I was hit, I stumbled back, and it sort of lifted me up into it. It was really cold. It felt like death or something," Harry shivered.

"Anything else?" Giles asked.

"No, I blacked out after that. Then I woke up in the hospital," Harry replied.

"Fascinating," Giles muttered as he looked over the information.

Harry felt his scar prickle and rubbed it without thinking.

"Are you alright?" Giles asked.

"Fine," Harry tried to flatten his bangs over his scar, but it was too late.

"Woah!" Xander stared at him. "Cool scar."

"It is most unusually shaped," Giles peered closer as if trying to see through Harry's hair. "How on earth did you get that?"

Harry stood up. "It's nothing. I'm going for a walk."

He didn't wait to hear their responses as he practically sprinted for the library doors and into the darkened halls of the high school. After walking through countless halls, he sat down tiredly on some stairs and sighed.

He just wanted to go home. If time passed the same in his world as this one, everyone would be mourning his 'death'. The fight at the ministry would be over. But what happened? Was anyone badly hurt? Did they catch any Death Eaters? What had happened to all his friends? He wanted so badly to go home and reassure everyone that he was alright.

Harry really didn't want to go into the details of his life with these total strangers. How would they react to the horrors of his life? How would they judge him? He knew almost nothing about these people, and there was no way he was going to spill everything about his life back in his world. Harry sighed and rubbed at his eyes.

"Long night?" a British voice startled him. Harry jumped up and pointed his wand at the intruder. In front of him leaning casually against the wall smoking a cigarette was some bleach blonde, extremely pale guy wearing a long black coat.

Harry just stared at him. "Who are you?"

"I can ask you the same question, mate," the man looked him up and down. "I haven't seen you hanging around the gang before."

"You mean Buffy?" Harry asked. "You guys are friends?"

The man smirked and tossed his cigarette aside. "You could say that. Me and ol' Buffy go way back. Why the hell are you pointing that stick at me?"

Harry lowered his wand, but kept it in his hand. "Sorry," he said. A chill went down his spine and a sense of foreboding came over him. Something wasn't right with this guy. He had a predatory look about him, and Harry felt the danger coming off him in waves.

"I better get back to the library," Harry started backing up. "They're probably missing me."

"Oh, you're not going anywhere," the man smiled before his face distorted and twisted, and suddenly his eyes were a fiery amber and he snarled with sharp fangs. Harry brought his wand up, but before he could utter the spell, a punch to his jaw sent him sprawling down the stairs.

Harry landed with a thud on the floor, the wind knocked out of him. He groaned in pain as his head made contact with the hard ground and his wand fell out of his hand. The vampire leapt at him and as Harry opened his mouth to scream, a cold hand clamped over his mouth.

"Shh, wouldn't want the others to come running, now do we?" the vampire grinned as he lowered his mouth towards Harry's neck.

Harry gasped as suddenly the vampire on top of him was sent flying across the room. He looked up to see Buffy in a fighting stance, the rest of the group right behind her, armed with crosses, holy water, and stakes. "Sorry, are we interrupting?" she asked.

The vampire snarled and looked up at her. "Slayer."

"Spike? What the hell are you doing back here?" Buffy glared.

"Whatever I feel like, Slayer," he got up and looked at all of them hatefully as Angel helped Harry up. "Better keep a closer eye on your friends. They might just get hurt."

"Heard the threats before, Spike," Buffy rolled her eyes. "So why don't we skip to the part where I kick your ass?"

Spike growled and backed up. "Maybe next time, Slayer."

The vampire turned and melted back into the shadows.

"A-aren't you going to follow him?" Willow asked the girl.

"No, we have more important things to worry about," Buffy looked at Harry. "Are you okay?"

"I'm brilliant," Harry picked up his wand and rubbed his aching jaw. "I've been attacked by two vampires in one night. Is this normal for you guys?"

"Pretty much," Xander nodded.

"Who was that guy?" Harry nodded towards the direction in which the vampire had disappeared.

"Spike," Angel glared at the shadows. "He's nothing but bad news."

"I got that much," Harry looked at him pointedly. "How did you guys know I was in trouble?"

"I sensed it," Buffy answered, staring back at the shadows with a thoughtful look on her face.

"Maybe we should call it a night?" Giles suggested.

"Here, here!" Xander added enthusiastically.

"I guess. We can come back in the morning," Buffy yawned and stretched.

The group headed back to the library where they packed up their stuff and got ready to leave. Harry stood there uncomfortably.

Giles looked up. "Oh, right, I apologize, Harry. I forgot you didn't have a place to stay."

There was an awkward silence until Angel broke the silence. "He can stay at my place."

"A-are you sure, Angel? I do have an extra sofa he could—" Giles stammered.

"I've got a mansion," Angel said without emotion. "And I would be able to protect him better."

"From what?" Xander looked confused.

"Vampires," Angel said, looking at Harry, who shifted uncomfortably. "He has a strange scent, and it lures the vampires like flies to honey. He'll be safer with me."

"But won't-" Xander began before he was elbowed in the stomach by Willow. "Ow!"

Buffy also sent him a meaningful look.

"Scent?' Harry asked incredulously. "How do you know?"

When no one answered and everyone looked extremely awkward, Willow jumped in, looking panicked. "Well, you know, the veggies a-and the vitamins. Remember?"

Harry was completely in the dark and wasn't satisfied with any of their answers, but didn't question. He was allowed his secrets, so he would allow them theirs. He didn't particularly like the idea of staying at Angel's, because to be honest, the guy seemed kind of dodgy, but the logic made sense.

"Alright, well, who needs a ride home?" Giles asked.

"I do," Xander raised his hand.

"I'll walk Willow home," Buffy said. "Maybe dust a few vamps on my way home."

"Alright, well, good night all," Giles and Xander walked out of the library. "See you in the morning."

Harry looked at Angel, who nodded his head and headed out the door. Harry sighed deeply before following him into the dark.

_Okay guys, sorry about the wait! School got in the way. Again, I have to say how flattered I am at the response and reviews I am getting. As to your questions about which season of buffy this is, it's the beginning of the third, only Buffy didn't have to kill Angel to save the world, and she didn't run away. So they've all forgiven Angel, he has his soul, and now Spike is back to cause some trouble. Oh, and I haven't decided whether or not I am going to include Faith. Thanks for the reviews, and I'll do my best to impress!  
Queen_


	6. Chapter 6: A day in the Library

Disclaimer: I don't own anything Harry Potter or Buffy

Harry rolled over, pulling the soft, warm comforter closer to his body, reveling in the warmth of the bed. He sighed contentedly before stretching. He frowned. This bed was huge, way bigger than the one in his dormitory, and was way too comfortable to be at the Dursley's. Where was he?

Harry blinked at the blurry room before putting on his glasses. He sat up quickly, looking around at the nice room. The décor was simple, but classy, and he was in a huge king sized bed complete with silk sheets and a thick comforter all in a deep shade of burgundy. What the hell-

Harry breathed a sigh of relief, almost hitting himself for being so stupid. He was at Angel's mansion in his guest rooms, stuck in a strange world he knew nothing about with no way of getting home to his friends.

The fifteen year old rubbed his eyes wearily. At least he had a good night's sleep, which surprised him. There had been no nightmares, no visions, and no dreaming of that stupid door that led to the Department of Mysteries. Harry frowned. He had almost hoped that he would have a vision, as painful as they were; he wanted to find out what had happened when he fell into the veil. He hated not knowing if his friends were alright. Maybe because he was in a different world, he couldn't have visions. Maybe time hadn't passed at all in his world. Maybe nothing bad had happened at all.

Harry sighed for what seemed the millionth time before throwing his legs over the side of the bed. He looked at the side table and was surprised to see his jeans, no longer covered in mud, and a black button-up shirt folded neatly on top of it.

He slipped into the bathroom, washed up, and looked at his bandage. He wanted to check on it, to clean it up and re-bandage it, but he didn't have any of the first aid supplies with him. He glared at the white bandage on his chest, because he knew if Madame Pomfrey had seen it, she would have fixed it with a wave of her wand. As it was, he was forced to take care of it the Muggle way, which was proving excruciatingly slow.

Sighing again, Harry exchanged the sweat pants he borrowed from Angel with the clean clothes. The shirt was too big, but it was better than his bloodied up t-shirt. Making sure his wand was tucked safely in his pocket, he headed out into the hall. He looked around warily for his host, remembering how uncomfortable the night before had been.

Angel had walked him back to the mansion and showed him the room he would be staying in. After tossing him a pair of sweats, the man had stared at him with a piercing gaze that made Harry nervous. The strangest thing was that he didn't even ask him any questions. He just stared at him before telling him where the bathroom was and bidding him a good night.

Harry's stomach growled loudly, and he winced. He hadn't eaten since the hospital, and one could hardly call that food. He entered the living room and nearly shouted as Angel's voice came from behind him. "You sleep alright?"

Harry whirled around, his eyes wide, before relaxing. "Oh, yeah. Thanks, and thanks for the shirt."

Angel stayed in the shadows, which Harry found extremely unnerving. "No problem. Giles is coming by in a few minutes to pick you up. He's bringing breakfast."

"Oh," Harry said. "And, er, where are we going?"

"Giles is taking you to the high school. For now, you're going to stick with him in the library, searching for a way to get you home," Angel replied, not blinking at all.

"You're not coming?" Harry asked.

"I have…things…to do here," Angel answered.

A quiet silence followed in which Harry had no idea what to say. Luckily, he was rescued by a knock at the door. He looked to Angel, expecting him to answer it, but the man only shifted deeper into the dark, nodding to Harry. Harry gave him a strange look before opening the door.

"Ah, Harry!" Giles smiled. "There we are."

Giles handed him a bag in which Harry discovered some kind of breakfast pastry. "Thanks."

"Ready to go?"

"Um, yeah," Harry turned his head. "Thanks, Angel."

Angel nodded and Harry walked out into the warm sunlight.

"See you tonight," Giles called to Angel before leading Harry to his car. Harry rolled up his sleeves in the heat and quickly wolfed down his breakfast. Giles smiled as he started the car and drove off. "Yes, I expected you were hungry."

"Thanks," Harry smiled again. "So, what's the plan?"

"The plan? Well," Giles began. "For now, you will be posing as my nephew from England, it makes it easier to explain the accent, and you will be my assistant in the library. That way you can avoid suspicion and still research to find a way back home."

Harry nodded. "Sounds pretty good."

He was very relieved not to actually attend the school's classes, as he would be extremely behind. The last time he had learned things like arithmetic and history were when he was ten.

They pulled into the high school and Harry all but sprinted to the library. Apparently, news spread around fast in a small town. Already people were staring and pointing at the new guy, which was something Harry had rather looked forward to not dealing with in this new world. He burst into the library with Giles following him, looking rather amused.

"So, you're the Giles's nephew from England?" Harry was startled to see a pretty brunette with a calculating and snobbish look on her face.

"Uh-" Harry stared.

"Articulate, too, I see," she rolled her eyes as she looked him over. "But not bad looking, I guess. At least you're not wearing tweed."

Harry had no response to this and looked to Giles for help.

"Hello, Cordelia," the man sighed.

"Well, now that I see for myself that the rumors are true, I have better things to do than sit around this stuffy old library. I have class," Cordelia flipped her hair before strutting out of the library, leaving Harry gaping at her.

"Yes, well, now you've met the infamous Cordelia Chase," Giles sat down. "She occasionally helps out with some of our-ah-cases."

"Her?" Harry asked incredulously.

Giles smiled. "Yes, well, I didn't say she was a very big help, now did I?"

"So, why didn't you tell her the truth about me?" Harry asked.

Giles waved him off. "She'll figure it out eventually. I don't have the strength this morning to try and explain all this to her."

"So," Harry looked around. "Research?"

"Yes, let's get to it. That volume there-no the one with the symbol that looks like a rabbit on the binding- you can start with that one," Giles picked up his own text and began flipping through it.

Harry looked at the huge, dusty book that looked like it had been written a billion years ago hopelessly. His only thought as he opened it and saw the gruesome picture inside was, _Bloody Hell_.

A few boring hours later, in which Harry had fallen asleep twice, found nothing on the veil, but thankfully avoided any questions about who he was or his past, it was lunchtime. He looked up gratefully as Buffy, Xander, Willow, and unfortunately Cordelia, filed into the library.

"Any luck, Giles?" Buffy asked.

"None," Giles continued reading.

"Hey Harry," Willow smiled at him as she and Xander sat down. Harry smiled back.

"I definitely don't envy you Harry," Xander shook his head dramatically and lowered his voice. "Stuck in here for hours trying to read these boring old demon books, that's pure torture!"  
Harry grinned. "Yeah, as much as I want to go home, I would rather not look through these dusty old things."

"Now that you're all here," Giles said, scanning one of the pages of notes. "You can help."

"No way, Giles. Right now is break time," Buffy answered. "No demony research for us. Harry looks like he could fall over."

Cordelia looked panicked for a moment. "When Buffy says 'demony' she really means World History, 'cuz boy, that history is a real demon!" she laughed awkwardly.

"He knows, Cordelia," Xander looked at her. Harry stifled a snigger.

"Oh," Cordelia sat down promptly and looked at Harry. "So how'd you get dragged into the world of the crazies?"

"Um," Harry looked at the others, but received no help. "Well, I think I'm from another dimension, so…"

"Neat," the girl looked anything but impressed.

"So, Harry, tell us a bit about yourself. All we really know is that you're from another dimension with Breath Feeders," Xander said.

"Death Eaters," Harry corrected. He sighed. He supposed it wouldn't hurt to tell them a little bit about himself. "Well, um, I'm fifteen-"

"You're fifteen?" Xander looked surprised. "I thought you were like, twelve."

Harry glared. "Thanks."

Xander looked a little abashed as Harry continued. "Anyways, I'm finishing up my fifth year at Hogwarts, that's my school where we learn magic."

"You go to a magic school?" Willow looked excited. "You learn spells?"

"Yeah, and other stuff like potions, herbology, transfiguration, and a bunch of other stuff," Harry nodded.

"Neat! I'm trying to learn some magic, myself," Willow explained. "I did a really complicated spell recently-"

"That almost killed you and was completely unnecessary," Xander snapped. Harry was surprised at the bitterness in his voice, and Willow looked down sullenly.

"Xander," Buffy gave him a look. He didn't say anything else, though he looked like he wanted to.

"So, now that that awkward moment is over, let's get back to you," Cordelia smiled.

"Um," Harry looked at his hands. "I play Quidditch-"

"Qui-what?" Willow looked at him oddly.

"Um, Quidditch," Harry felt the heat rise on his cheeks. "It's a wizard's sport, played on broomstick."

Cordelia burst out laughing before she realized no one else was laughing with her. "Wait, you're serious? You think you're a wizard?"

"I know I'm a wizard," Harry said defensively.

He was met with a skeptical look that basically said I'll believe it when I see it. Harry hesitated for a moment before realizing that there was no Ministry of Magic, and he could do magic whenever he wanted. the thought made him smile as he pointed his wand at Giles's chair and whispered, "_Wingardium Leviosa_."

The man was so engrossed in the book he was reading that he didn't even realize that he was now four feet above the table. Willow squealed excitedly, and Harry smirked at the looks of shock the others were portraying as they stared at Giles.

"Hey G-man!" Xander shouted.

"Hmm?" Giles asked distractedly.

"Look down," Xander grinned.

Giles tore his eyes from the volume in his hands to do as the boy had asked. Immediately he paled, dropped the book he was holding, and gripped the edge of his chair so tightly Harry was surprised it didn't break. Everyone laughed as he spluttered, "Harry! P-put me down now! G-gently!"

Harry carefully set the man back on the ground, where he visibly relaxed. Everyone laughed again. "Geez, Giles. I didn't think you were afraid of heights," Willow giggled.

Giles glared at her crossly. "I'm not! It w-was just unexpected!"

He turned to Harry, who sunk in his chair and tried to keep his face serious. "Do you realize what could have happened?"

Harry looked at him.

"Any student could have walked in here and seen that! What do you think would happen then? That was very immature and very foolish!" and with that, the librarian stormed off to his office.

Harry's high spirit deflated. "I didn't think he would take it so harshly."

"Don't take it personally," Buffy said casually. "He doesn't really get the whole 'fun' thing. Besides, I thought it was hilarious!"

"Me too," Willow grinned.

Harry smiled. "Yeah, I reckon Fred and George would have been proud of me," he stopped, realizing what he said, and his stomach sunk. He wanted to go home so badly!

There was a small silence after the others watched Harry grow more dismal. "So," Xander spoke. "What's Quidditch?"

Harry perked up a little bit. "Well, it's a great sport where you fly around and—" he proceeded to explain the rules of the game. Xander and Willow seemed really interested. Cordelia did not.

"So, what do your parents think about you playing such a dangerous sport in the air where you can fall and break your neck at any time?" she asked.

Harry paused, debating over whether he should tell them. He decided against it. He didn't want the looks of pity from them, because hopefully, he wouldn't be here that long anyway. What could a little lie hurt? "They don't mind. My Dad played it too."

"So, you go to school in England?" Buffy guessed.

"No, Scotland, actually. But I live in England," Harry said.

"How do you get to school on time everyday?" Xander gaped.

"Um, well I go there year round. I only go back in the summer," Harry purposefully left out the word home.

"Oh, I knew that," Xander said, looking kind of embarrassed.

Harry took that chance to ask them some questions. He got a few vague answers, but learned some interesting stuff about Buffy, what it meant to be a Slayer, and even got to hear about some of their adventures. Unfortunately, their conversations had to be cut short as the bell rang and they had to go to class.

Harry sat in his chair for a few minutes, debating on whether or not he should try and look through the books again, before he finally decided to get back to work. How was he supposed to get home if he didn't put some effort into it?

Harry found that he rather liked this strange group of people. They didn't compare to his friends back at home, but then again, he didn't really know them yet. _And hopefully I won't have to_, he thought. _As much as I like them, I want to go home_.

_Well, there you go readers! A whole new chapter, a little longer than the previous ones. I really appreciate the reviews, and I hope you like the story so far. I know there wasn't any action in this chapter, but I wanted some interaction between the scoobies and Harry. What do you think? Let me know, and I'll get another chapter to you soon.  
Queen_


	7. Chapter 7: Bait

Disclaimer: I don't own anything Harry Potter or Buffy

Harry was sitting on the floor, his wand out, levitating books across the room, summoning them and sending them back to the bookshelf where he had gotten them. He had never been so bored before, not even at the Dursley's. He had spent the entire day looking through boring books that had been no help at all. At this point, he was losing hope that he would ever find his way home.

Everyone else had gone home after school, promising Giles they would be back that night for research and patrol. Harry wished he could go with them, but he had to look through the books.

Harry jumped up as someone came in the library. Willow and Buffy were chatting animatedly about some boy in their English class. "Hi," Harry said, perhaps a bit too enthusiastically.

"Hi Harry," Willow smiled kindly at him. "Any luck?"

"No," Harry sighed. "This is proving more difficult than I thought."

"Tell me about it," Buffy sighed. "Things are always difficult here."

"Good to know," Harry groaned. "So what's 'patrol'?"

"Angel and I, sometimes the others come too, go out to the cemeteries to dust some vamps, maybe a demon or two," Buffy shrugged.

Harry paused. "Can I come?"

Buffy looked at him warily. "I don't know…you're pretty young, and you probably should help with the research."

"I'm fifteen! Besides, you saw me kill that other vampire the other night! I'll stay out of your way, I promise," he lowered his voice. "I really need to get out of here."

Buffy looked sympathetically at the young wizard and his pleading expression. "Oh alright. You can come. But you have to stay back."

"I promise," Harry said enthusiastically. He supposed on normal circumstances, he would be worried about going off with people he hardly knew to fight vampires, but after the draining day, he was willing to do anything.

"Are you sure that's a good idea?" Angel's soft voice came from the shadows. Harry whirled around.

"When did you get here?" Harry asked.

Angel ignored him. "The vampires will follow him, his scent is too strong. Even here he isn't very safe."

"Perfect!" Buffy smiled.

Angel, Harry, and Willow looked at her oddly. She shrugged. "What? Harry can be bait!"

Suddenly this didn't seem like a good idea. "Uh-"

"Look, we won't let them hurt you. You just sit out in the open, the vampires will smell you, try and eat you, and poof!" Buffy smiled, but seeing the incredulous looks on everyone else's faces, she frowned. "What? I thought it was a good idea."

"It's brilliant," Harry said with a raise of his eyebrow. "Except for the whole bait part."

"Oh Harry, we'll be right there. What's the worst that can happen?" Buffy asked.

"A vampire will suck out all his blood and he'll join the armies of the undead," Xander jumped in as he walked in the library with a box of donuts.

"Thanks," Harry said in disbelief.

"Donuts?" Buffy raised an eyebrow. "Xander, it's 8:30."

"I'm not complaining," Willow took a bite of a jelly filled donut.

"Ready?" Buffy looked at Angel and Harry expectantly.

"For what?" Giles came out of his office. "Ooh, donuts."

"Patrol. Harry's coming with. He's bait," Buffy smiled at the genius of her plan.

Giles munched on a chocolate donut. "Mhmm? Yes, that's nice," he stopped chewing and looked up sharply. "You can't be serious."

"Why not?"

"H-he's far too young, Buffy! He has no experience in fighting! Using him as bait is extremely irresponsible and dangerous," Giles answered fiercely.

Buffy opened her mouth to respond, but Harry beat her to it. "I've had a lot more experience fighting than you think. I may not know how to fight the way you muggles do, but I'm far from helpless," Harry argued.

"Muggles?" Angel asked.

"Non-magic folk," Harry said, his gaze never left Giles.

There were questions in the Watcher's eyes, but he didn't ask them. "Are you sure?"

"Positive," Harry answered shortly, a bit annoyed that this man he didn't know was trying to control him. "Besides, Buffy and Angel will be there."

"I suppose I have no say in the matter," Giles looked disappointed, though Harry wasn't really sure why.

"Alright, let's hit the road," Buffy grabbed a stake and strode out of the library with Angel right behind her. Harry looked back for a moment.

"Go ahead, magic man," Xander smiled. "We'll hold down the fort."

"Yeah, we'll keep looking for a way to get you home," Willow took another bite.

"Thanks," Harry smiled and followed the pair eagerly into the night.

Ok, this wasn't exactly what I had in mind, Harry thought. He was currently sitting on a bench in the middle of a rather large cemetery, by himself. He wasn't sure how long he had been sitting there, but he was already bored, and the cemetery made him kind of nervous.

Harry couldn't sense the Slayer or Angel anywhere, but he knew they were close by, or at least, he hoped they were. He fiddled with the wand in his hand, but he had already promised himself that he wouldn't use it unless it was necessary. He wanted to see how the others handled vampires.

"Well, what are you waiting for?" a harsh voice asked, making Harry jump to his feet, his heart pounding. Standing a few yards away were a pair of vampires, a man and a woman.

The female pouted. "It's no fun when they just stand there and stare. I like it when they try and run."

"Well, I'm hungry, and this one smells so good," the male licked his lips.

Harry took a step back, looking around for the others. The pair charged at him. He brought his wand up, the spell on his lips, when a dark blur tackled them into the ground. Harry watched, stunned, as Buffy and Angel fought the two with grace and ease. Angel was silent as he fought, punching, ducking, and kicking furiously.

Buffy was smiling, offering little quips in between blows. In a matter of minutes, the vampires had been staked, and Buffy brushed off her clothes. "See? I told you bait was a good idea."

"Wow," Harry wished he had something more to say, but that was the only thing in his mind.

"Yeah, well," Buffy smiled. "We don't all have magic wands, now do we?"

"Buffy," Angel looked over Harry's shoulder. "Incoming."

Harry turned around and his stomach sank. Five vampires were stalking towards them menacing, all with their eyes trained on Harry. Without hesitating, the Slayer and her friend had moved in front of Harry.

"Aw come on," Buffy taunted. "Can't we all just get along?"

The vampires paid her no attention.

"No?" she asked. "Alright then, but don't say I didn't warn you."

And with that they were in action. Harry watched in awe as they took on a few vampires each, dodging painful blows and delivering their own. One by one the vampires turned into dust before Harry's eyes. He watched as a particularly big one, that might have been a body builder while he was alive, attacked Angel.

Angel didn't duck in time, so the vampires fist went smashing into his jaw. He fell to the ground, and when he lifted his head up, Harry gasped and took a step back. Angel's face was horribly distorted. His eyes were amber, and he growled through his fangs. He rolled over and jumped to his feet, kicking the other vampire in the groin.

The vampire doubled over with pain, and Angel grabbed its head and twisted, and with a sickening crack, the head was gone, and there was nothing more than a pile of dust.

When Angel turned around, his face was back to normal, but Harry raised his wand defensively. Buffy had just finished her last vampire and turned around to see Harry, who looked terrified, pointing his wand at Angel. Oh no.

"Harry, what are you doing? Put that down!" she ordered.

"H-he's a vampire!' Harry stated, his eyes wide.

"I know," Buffy said calmly.

"You know?" Harry raised his voice incredulously.

She sighed. "Yes, Angel and I have known each other for quite some time. But you don't have to worry about him. He's on our side."

"I thought vampires were evil," Harry's eyes narrowed. He still hadn't lowered his wand.

"They are, but Angel isn't. He has a soul," Buffy told him.

"How?"

"I was cursed," Angel said softly, his eyes not leaving the boy wizard. "A long time ago, gypsies cursed me with a soul."

Harry saw Buffy struggling inside before giving Angel a sympathetic look. "Harry, please lower your wand. He's on our side. Trust me."

"Why should I? He's-a-vampire!" Harry gritted out.

"Not everything is white and black, Harry," Buffy's eyes narrowed. "And as for why you should trust me and trust Angel, didn't you stay at Angel's house last night? He could have sucked you dry if he wanted to, but he didn't. I trust him, and so does everyone else. He helps us fight evil, and he's saved our lives more than once. Now, don't make me ask again."

Harry kept his eyes trained on the vampire, but slowly lowered his wand. Trying to force himself to relax despite his instincts telling him to run for it, Harry sighed. "Now what then?"

"We move onto the next cemetery," Buffy stated, walking past him. Angel followed her, his eyes avoiding Harry's. Harry felt a chill go down his spine as he remembered Angel's words about his "scent" and shuddered to think that he had slept in the same house as the vampire. Everything made sense now. The strange and creepy vibe he got from the bloke, Angel staying in the shadows, appearing out of nowhere, Willow's weird comments…

"You coming?" Buffy called over her shoulder. Harry shook his head and followed them, making sure he had a tight grip on his wand.

The next cemetery seemed empty. They had been there for a long time, and no vamps. Harry was bait again, and he found the waiting more unbearable than the fighting. Without warning, four vampires appeared as if from nowhere and ran at him. Fighting the rising panic, he waited for Buffy and Angel to charge, more confident that they would appear.

This time, however, they didn't come. At the sound of fighting, Harry whirled around and his stomach sunk. Buffy and Angel were surrounded by a group of vampires, fighting viciously.

Harry turned and raised his wand as the vampires closed in on him. The spell was on his lips, one _lumos maxima_, and they would all be toast. He looked back for a second. Angel would be ashes too. He debated for a second and aimed at the largest one's chest. "_Incendio_!"

The vampire screamed as the fire spread and engulfed him, leaving him no more than a pile of ashes. The others looked startled, then really angry. Harry ran backwards as he raised his wand again. "_Petrificus Totalus_!"

Another vampire froze and fell to the ground. They had almost reached him. "_Incendio_!" Harry fired, killing another one, but the last vampire was too close. It backhanded him, and Harry fell to the ground with a cry. He heard Buffy call his name as the vampire picked him up by his collar and growled fiercely. His hand wrapped around his throat, and Harry struggled to breathe.

"Any last words?" the vampire sneered as he leaned closer to Harry's neck.

Harry's words came out as mumbling as his airflow was restricted. The vampire sneered again as he loosened his grip. "What was that?"

"_Incendio_!" Harry dug his wand into the vampire's chest and was dropped to the ground as it exploded into ashes.

Shaking his head, Harry stood up. He couldn't believe the vampire was stupid enough to loosen his grip and let Harry speak, but he was definitely grateful. He whirled around at the sound of approaching footsteps, but relaxed when he saw it was only Buffy and Angel. "Are you alright?" Buffy breathed heavily. "We were jumped and couldn't get to you."

"I'm fine," Harry said.

"Woah," Buffy looked over his shoulder at the vampire who was still on the ground, unmoving. "What did you do to that one?"

"Body bind," Harry answered as Buffy pulled out a stake, leaned over, and stabbed it into the vampire's heart.

"Nifty," Buffy smiled. "You sure held your own. Although I have to admit I was worried when that last one knocked you down."

"Well, I might have avoided that, but I noticed at the last minute that you guys weren't coming," Harry admitted.

"Yeah well, we didn't notice them either until it was too late," Buffy said while she stretched.

"Buffy, we should head back," Angel said.

"Already?" Buffy frowned.

"We've been out here for hours," Harry told her.

"And it's almost sunrise," Angel said pointedly.

"Oh, right," Buffy nodded and walked past the tombstones. "Back to the library I suppose."

Harry glanced at Angel as the "souled vampire" walked next to him.

"I'll understand if you'd rather stay at Giles's apartment," Angel said without looking at him. His voice was tight and strained.

Harry looked at him warily. "You really have a soul?"

Angel nodded.

"And you don't want to bite me?"

Angel didn't answer for a moment, which didn't reassure Harry. "It's not that I don't want to, it's just that I choose not to."

"Well, that makes me feel loads better," Harry said sarcastically.

Angel ignored him. "I'm a vampire, Harry. So your scent is just as tempting to me as to other vampires, but I know how to restrain myself. I want to do good, Harry. I've spent years trying to atone for the horrible things I did as a demon. I don't want to hurt you, and I won't."

Harry watched him oddly. "So, you're saying I should trust you."

"No," Angel said. His gaze darkened considerably. "You should always be on your guard around me. I'm still a vampire."

Harry threw up his hands. "You're being extremely difficult. First you say that you want to bite me, but won't because you're a good vampire. Then you say I shouldn't trust you? Make up your mind."

Angel said nothing, but looked as confused as Harry felt. He sighed. "Look, I won't hurt you. The others trust me, but I don't expect you to."

Harry didn't know why, but he felt a little more at ease around the vampire. He seemed almost…human. Sure he was still creepy, and Harry was cautious, but Harry felt that he could trust him.

"I think I'll stay at the mansion, for now," Harry said. "If that's alright with you."

"It's fine," Angel said.

The two had reached some kind of peace, and Harry felt better. His confused and tired mind that was over laden with the books he had read that day felt more awake and focused from the fighting. He felt good. He felt ready. He felt like nothing could prevent him from getting back home.

A pair of cold, calculating eyes watched the trio hatefully, its gaze lingering on the boy wizard before turning back into the shadows.

There you go readers, another chapter! Thank you for all the reviews, and i try to keep most of it in mind. This is my first fanfiction, and I always welcome advice and suggestions. Thanks for reading!

Queen


	8. Chapter 8: Just Another Day

**Sorry for the long wait, readers! I had a hard time with my writer's block. J Hope you enjoy this next chapter!**

**Disclaimer: I don****'t own anything Harry Potter or Buffy the Vampire Slayer.**

Buffy blocked a poorly aimed punch and returned with two swift punches aimed at the boy's chest. Harry jumped back, avoiding the blows, putting his hands up defensively.

Buffy threw him a roundhouse kick, which he dodged again. Harry swung with his right hand, which Buffy caught and twisted, causing the wizard to cry out in pain. She pulled him into a headlock, and despite the boy's struggles, he could not escape.

"Give up?" Buffy taunted, a smile on her face.

Harry relaxed in her tight grip. "Yeah, I give."

She let go of him and smiled as he collapsed in the chair breathing heavily. He was covered in sweat, and she knew from experience that every muscle in his body was sore. He winced. "Bloody hell that hurts."

Buffy smiled and skipped over to hand him a water bottle. He took it gratefully, but looked at her with a small glare. "How can you not be tired?"

"Practice," she shrugged. "Not to mention Slayer strength and endurance."

"Not fair," Harry mumbled.

"That was pretty good, Harry. You're getting better. You're pretty fast and agile, that will help you if it ever comes down to hand to hand combat, not that you'll ever be able to beat me of course," Buffy smiled and sat on the table, swinging her legs.

"I still can't believe you talked me into muggle fighting," Harry sighed and wiped the sweat from his forehead.

"Well I figured we could do without a repeat of last time," Buffy grimaced.

Harry mirrored her face as he thought of last week's patrol. He had been helping Buffy and Angel, but some vampires had snuck up behind him and taken his wand. He had been bitten, which hurt like hell, but the vampire had barely gotten a few swallows before he was staked.

Giles had been furious and had forbidden Harry from patrolling. Harry had only agreed when Buffy said it was only temporary, on the condition that he learn physical combat in case he was ever in that situation again.

"You coming bronzing tonight?" Buffy asked.

"Bronzing?" Harry asked confusedly.

"Oh, sorry. It's the coolest nightclub in Sunnydale," Buffy frowned. "Well, actually, it's the only nightclub in Sunnydale."

"I don't know…" Harry trailed off uncomfortably. The idea of going to a nightclub was not very appealing.

"Aw, come on," Buffy smiled. "It'll be fun! There's dancing, and music, and everyone will be there."

"Everyone will be where?" Giles came out of his office, a cup of tea in his hands.

"The Bronze," Buffy replied, steeling herself against the inevitable arguments.

"Buffy, you should be-" Giles started.

"Patrolling?" she frowned at him. "Giles, I've been on patrol every night this week! I need a break! Besides, everything has been quiet lately, and it's a Saturday night. You shouldn't work your Slayer too hard, you know. An overworked Slayer is a cranky Slayer."

Harry stifled a snicker as he watched the encounter. Giles sighed. "I suppose you've earned a night of fun."

Buffy smiled and hopped off the desk. "Thanks, Giles! See you tonight, Harry!"

Harry groaned inwardly. Bloody hell.

To say Harry felt out of place was an understatement. He was sitting at a table with Willow, who was watching a boy in the band with an adoring gaze that made Harry uncomfortable. The music was blaring, but good, and all the couples were out on the dance floor, grinding and swaying to the beat.

His eyes picked out Xander and Cordelia, then moved on to find Buffy and Angel. Harry smiled. Angel looked extremely uncomfortable with the fast paced dancing, and the sight of a vampire dancing almost made Harry laugh out loud.

The band finished the song and Willow clapped loudly, a grin on her face. "Who's that guy?" Harry asked.

"What guy?" Willow asked dreamily.

"The one you're staring at," Harry replied.

"Oz, my boyfriend," Willow gave Oz a little wave, and he offered a smile in response.

"Does he know about all the, you know…" Harry trailed off.

"Oh yeah," Willow nodded. "He helps with research sometimes. Besides, he's a werewolf."

She clapped her hand over her mouth and looked shocked for a moment. "But, a good werewolf-well, actually that's not true-but we keep him in a cage during the full moon-"

"You keep him in a cage?" Harry raised an eyebrow as Willow looked more flustered than ever.

"Yeah, but otherwise he would kill and maim and—"

Harry was sure she would have gone on forever had he not raised a hand. "Look, I'm ok with the fact that he's a werewolf."

Willow looked relieved. "You are?"

"Sure, my professor is a werewolf. It doesn't bother me," Harry shrugged.

"Oh, good," Willow smiled again.

The next song began, and it was a slow song. Harry twirled his straw wishing he could be fighting vampires or even researching as he felt completely out of place here.

Willow seemed to realize something and asked awkwardly, "You didn't want to dance, did you?"

"No," Harry said immediately, sounding a little scared. "oh, not unless you wanted too, I mean—"

"No, I'm o-okay. I just thought maybe you might…" Willow averted her eyes, and she blushed violently.

Harry seemed to want to say something, then stopped. "I'm, uh, going to go get some soda."

"Yeah, o-okay," Willow smiled as he left. When she was sure he wasn't looking, she sighed and slammed her head on the table. "Good job, Willow. There you were, having a totally nice time watching Oz and hanging out with Harry and you had to ruin it with asking him to dance. What was I thinking?"

"Hey there, Will, talking to yourself again?" Xander's voice asked from above.

She sat up, frowning. "Nope. No talking to myself here."

Willow looked around. "Where's Cordelia?"

"She went to the bathroom to preen," Xander sat down. "Where'd Harry go?"

"To escape the awkwardness that is me," Willow sighed. "It was all fine until I asked him if he wanted to dance."

"You what?" Xander leaned in. "You don't, uh, like him or anything, do ya?"

"No!" Willow looked appalled that he would suggest such a thing. "Of course not! He was just sitting there, and he seemed kind of sad a-and uncomfortable. I thought maybe he wanted to."

"Oh," Xander sat back. "Well, it could be worse."

"How could it possibly be worse?" Willow asked.

Xander's eyes widened as he looked over her shoulder. "Oh, I don't know. Spike could be leading some unsuspecting victim into the dark alley to maul and leave the body behind for Buffy as a 'I'm back to cause mayhem' sort of message."

"Well that was oddly speci-oh!" Willow caught sight of the scene.

Xander had already gotten up. "Get Buffy, now!"

Willow jumped up to find the slayer and Xander headed to the alley without thinking. He got there just in time to see Spike lean towards the girl's neck.

"Let her go!" Xander shouted.

Spike looked up and rolled his eyes. "Oh, and I suppose I'm supposed to be so intimidated by you, the Slayer's pet, that I'll just 'let her go'?"

"Um, yes," Xander said, suddenly unsure of his attempt at bravado.

Buffy and Angel, followed by a scared looking Willow, burst into the alley. Spike groaned. "Bugger! Can't you people let a guy eat?!"

"Let her go," Buffy demanded.

"Is that all you people can say?" Spike chuckled. "Bit pathetic really."

"I'm not asking, Spike," Buffy stepped forward. "Let her go, or I'll make you."

Spike growled and tightened his grip on the terrified girl's throat, pulling her in front of him as a shield. He looked at the group in front of him, shook his head and sighed. "It's just not bloody worth it."

He threw the girl forward, and she stumbled into Buffy and fell into Xander's arms. Buffy looked as Spike disappeared over the wall and sighed. "He is really starting to annoy me."

Cordelia and Harry burst into the alleyway. "What did we miss?"

_It was black all around him, and the air was biting cold. Harry shivered, rubbed his arms, and walked forward. The blackness seemed to fade away, and he gasped in shock at the scene in front of him._

_He saw himself standing next to Sirius, both of them dueling Bellatrix. He saw the Order members fighting other Death Eaters. "LOOK OUT!" he tried to warn himself, but the boy down there couldn't hear, so didn't notice until it was too late that a cutting hex was heading straight for him. He watched as the boy fell through the veil as Sirius ran forward to grab him._

"_NO, Sirius!" Remus wrapped his arms on the devastated godfather who fought viciously to be free._

"_Let go, Remus!" he cried. "HE JUST WENT THROUGH! I CAN SAVE H IM!"_

"_It's too late, Padfoot! HE"S GONE!" the werewolf had tears running down his shocked face._

_Harry watched helplessly as the Order members stared in shock and pain at the veil, and his friends began sobbing, full of grief._

_Harry jumped as a piercing laughter filled the echoing hall. "I killed HARRY POTTER!" Bellatrix laughed, almost skipping out the door._

_Harry felt rage bubbling up inside him, but it dissipated when he saw Sirius break free of Remus's grip and run after the witch. "SHE KILLED HIM! I KILL HER!"_

"_NO! SIRIUS STOP!" Harry ran after his godfather, skidding to a halt when he saw him standing over the fallen Bellatrix, his wand pointed at her and a wild look in his eyes. "SIRIUS!"_

"_Expelliarmus!" a voice hissed, and Sirius's wand flew out of his hands. Sirius glared defiantly at the approaching figure of the Dark Lord._

"_You miss your godson already, don't you Black?" he hissed quietly._

_Sirius made no answer, just clenched his fists tightly._

"_Do not worry, you will be reunited soon enough," as Voldemort said this, his crimson eyes looked up and straight into Harry's. _

_Harry's mouth dropped in horror as Voldemort shot green light at his godfather, who fell in a rumpled pile at his feet. "SIRIUS NOOO!"_

_He shook Sirius's body, but the man was already gone. Tears running down his face, he looked up as Voldemort loomed over him, smiling. "It's your fault Harry. It's always been your fault. Avada Kedavra!"_

"NOOOOOOOO!" Harry woke with a start, breathing heavily. Disoriented by the sheets wrapped tightly around him, he panicked and flung himself out of the bed, scooting back from the bed.

"Harry?" a quiet, concerned voice asked.

Harry squinted in the dark, trying to catch his breath. "Angel?"

"It's me," the figure crept forward, but cautiously. "Here are your glasses."

Harry accepted them greatly, looking up into the now clear face of the vampire. Harry shut his eyes, but immediately snapped them open as the sight of his lifeless godfather's eyes flashed before his eyes in a burst of green light.

"Are you alright?" Angel asked.

Harry ignored him, thinking rapidly. Was that a vision? Had that happened when he fell through? Oh god, what if Sirius was dead? Who else could be hurt or killed because of his rashness? What had happened to his friends? A sudden thought sent waves of calm through his body. He put a shaking hand to his scar. Nothing. It didn't hurt at all. It didn't hurt during or after the dream. It couldn't have been a vision, just a nightmare. His breathing calmed, and he wiped the sweat from his forehead. It was just a nightmare.

"I'm ok," he said quietly, not meeting the vampire's gaze. "Sorry."

"There's nothing to be sorry about," Angel said. "Do you want to talk about it?"

Harry thought about this. He hadn't been really truthful with anyone. He lied about his parents, covered up all the dangerous things he had done, and had avoided the subject of the ministry fiasco and Voldemort altogether. Part of him really wanted to tell Angel, but he didn't want to face the questions or the looks of pity.

But would Angel really treat him that way? He wasn't one to share and was hardly social with anyone except for Buffy. The vampire seemed genuine in his concern, and appeared as if he was willing to listen.

"Not now," Harry sighed. "I can't."

"I understand," Angel said. "Do you need anything else? Some water?"

"No," Harry stood up shakily. "I don't think I'm going back to sleep though. I'll just go for a walk."

Angel grimaced. "You can't Harry. It's too dangerous. The–"

"Vampires, yeah, I forgot," Harry sighed. "Never mind. Thanks, Angel, and I'm sorry for waking you."

"I was already awake, and it was nothing," Angel assured him. He hesitated. "Are you sure you don't need anything else?"

"Yeah. Good night," Harry walked to the bathroom to splash water on his face. He took a deep breath and muttered. "It was just a nightmare."

Harry jogged up the steps of the high school, thankfully deserted of all students. School had started awhile ago, but Harry had slept in. He knew Giles wouldn't mind. He was thinking about his nightmare again, so he was surprised when he ran into someone. "Oh, sorry."

Principal Snyder glared up at him, his beady eyes narrowed maliciously. "Watch where you're going young man. Shouldn't you be in class?"

"Oh, well, you see-"

"I don't want to hear your excuses!" the man snapped, interrupting Harry's explanation. "Detention! What's your name?"

"Harry Potter, but–"

"No! There's no way your wiggling out of this one, you troublemaker. You teenagers are all the same. You think you can stroll into class whenever you feel like it, that everyone will put a hold on their schedules just for you. Not under my roof," Snyder ranted.

Harry sighed in frustration. "Look, I'm Mr. Giles's nephew! I came here from London to work as his assistant. I'm not late for any classes, and I am not a student here."

Snyder started and peered at him. "I see. Well then, Mr. Porter, the rules still apply. I don't see why you can't be on time like everyone else. Why were you so late?"

"He was delivering some books for me, Principal Snyder," Giles said behind the beady eyed man.

Snyder looked disappointed. "Fine. I have my eye on you, Mr. Porter."

Harry watched the man walk off, suppressing a shudder. The man reminded him of Filch, who would jump at the chance to get a student in trouble and who always had that malicious gleam in his own beady eyes. He felt a hand on his shoulder and looked up at Giles.

"Shall we?" Giles motioned towards the library.

"Yeah, and thanks by the way," Harry nodded towards the direction Snyder had disappeared.

"It's no problem," Giles smiled. "That man has always gotten on my nerves."

Harry grinned. "Yeah, he reminds me of someone back home. Never liked him much either."

They entered the library. "Harry, I hope you don't mind, but I thought we could research something else today."

"Giles, I'm pretty sure we've looked through every book you have," Harry sighed. "There's nothing on the veil. What do you have in mind?"

"Now, Harry, we're not giving up on you," Giles told him reassuringly. "I've already placed an order for some more books on dimension theory. But for now, we must do some different research. Last night Buffy encountered a demon."

"What else is new?" Harry asked, grinning.

"Yes, well," Giles smiled. "This was a demon we haven't encountered before, although with the description she gave me I'm sure we've met its cousin at least."

"It's cousin?" Harry questioned.

"Yes, the Lurconis demon, if I'm not mistaken," Giles said. "Basically a giant snake."

"Like a basilisk?" Harry asked, remembering his own adventure with a giant serpent.

"A what?" Giles asked.

"Basilisk, a huge snake," Harry answered, sitting on the table. "We had one of those in my dimension."

"Good Lord, how was it defeated?" Giles asked, taking off his glasses.

"Sword," Harry answered vaguely. "So, this demon Buffy found is somehow related to this snake demon?"

"Y-yes," Giles frowned "You know, actually, this is the third snake like demon we've encountered. The first was Machida. How odd. I wonder if there's a connection..."

"Maybe it's a family reunion," Harry looked at the open book and grimaced at the detailed drawing of a huge snake like creature with what looked like scorpion legs and extra long fangs. "Buffy fought this guy already?"

"Yes, but she didn't kill him. She and Angel found him attacking some students," Giles answered. "However, it escaped, and they found that their blows had almost no effect whatsoever. That's why we're researching, trying to find its weaknesses."

"All this book says is that its scales are as hard as diamonds," Harry read. "No wonder they couldn't beat it."

"Here, you look through this one, and I'll check this one out," Giles handed him a book.

After no more than five minutes, Harry said, "I found it!"

"How could you possibly have found it that fast?" Giles stared at him. "We never find anything that quickly when we have the whole group looking for something."

"I just flipped through the pictures," Harry grinned. "This one says that it avoids fire. There you go. That's our best bet."

That evening, the whole scooby gang and Harry had gathered in the library, ready to create a plan of action.

"So, fire," Xander said. "That should be easy. Harry can just zap the snake like he does the vampires."

"Yeah, but he only makes little fires," Willow said. "The Kalshock demon is a lot of demon and needs a lot of fire."

"We could lure him into some empty warehouse stocked with gasoline tanks," Oz offered.

"Yeah and burn the whole street down," Cordelia rolled her eyes. "Great plan."

"Actually it is," Buffy said. "We can be ready with fire extinguishers and stuff in case it goes wrong. Harry can you do a water spell?"

Harry nodded.

"Ok, now we have a plan, who's going to be bait?" Xander asked. "And because I asked the question, my person can no longer be taken into consideration."

Harry sighed. "I have a really bad idea."

**Dear readers,**

**I cannot express how grateful I am for the wonderful reviews. I hope you enjoyed this one, and I apologize for the long wait. I wanted to do an extra long chapter for those of you who took the time to write me a wonderful review. Thanks for reading!**

**Queen**


	9. Chapter 9: Demons

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything Harry Potter or Buffy the Vampire Slayer**

Harry walked down the deserted street, hands in his pockets. His heart was pounding in his chest as he scanned the silent street for the snake demon, hoping that his plan, which now seemed like a really bad idea, would work, and he would not get eaten.

He saw rustling in the bushes next to him and froze, his grip on his wand tightening. He took a few steps back, and he couldn't hear anything over the increasing beat of his heart. He tensed, ready for the monstrous beast to attack.

A squirrel scurried out, staring at him silently and twitching his nose. Harry sighed irritably and glared at the little rodent that had scared him. He was about to turn away when more rustling sounded, and before his eyes the squirrel was picked up in giant snake jaws and swallowed hole.

Harry's mouth dropped as the beast turned its eyes on him. The picture had not done it justice. It's body was of a black snake, but sprouting from its scaly hide were six enormous scorpion-like legs that glistened dangerously in the moonlight. It reared its giant head, ready to strike, when Harry put up his hands.

"_Wait_," he hissed, praying that this demon spoke snake language. The monster blinked in surprised.

"_How do you know the language of the ssserpentsss_?" it asked, cocking its head.

Harry swallowed thickly. "_I_ _have always been able to ssspeak the noble language."_

The beast shifted and scuttled closer, and Harry had to force himself not to back away. "_Very interesssting_," it hissed.

"_I thought maybe we could help each other_," Harry said shakily.

"You _help _me?" he asked, amused. "_What could you possibly do, little sssspeaker_?"

"_You eat humanssss, right?"_ Harry tried to sound nonchalant about it, but the thought made him sick. "_I have a problem with sssome humansss of my own, and I wassss hoping you could take care of them."_

The snake hissed menacingly, and Harry shrunk back. "_I am Lord of the Ssserpents and will not do sssome human'sss bidding!"_

"_I meant no offenssse, my Lord_," Harry hastened to correct himself. "_I jussst thought I could offer you a free meal that would benefit sssomeone asss low asss myssself."_

The demon considered him quietly, and Harry hoped he didn't intend to punish Harry for his rudeness by eating him.

"_Where isss it?"_ the snake asked.

"_I can show you, my Lord_," Harry offered. "_It isss very near_."

"_Lead the way, little ssspeaker,"_ the demon scuttled after him, a sound that made Harry shudder and want to flee.

Harry tried to calm his heartbeat, but to no avail. He was absolutely terrified to be alone in the presence of the snake/scorpion demon. It reminded him too much of the basilisk, and like that time, he was all alone. Harry just hoped the rest of the plan would run smoothly.

He approached the warehouse and opened one of the large doors, "_It isss here, Lord_," Harry bowed, and the action reminded him of the Death Eaters bowing to Voldemort, a thought that made Harry sick.

"_An odd place, for humansss_," the demon stared at him suspiciously.

"_I tricked them into meeting me here_," Harry hissed.

The demon glanced at him before scuttling inside. "_I sssmell them!"_

Harry saw Buffy hiding upstairs behind some crates. She nodded at him. Harry shut the door and locked it. "_Yesss, my Lord. They are here."_

Harry edged towards the stairs, but froze as the snake turned to him.

"_Call them out, little ssspeaker. They are hiding,"_ he said, scuttling towards the middle of the warehouse.

"Hello?" Harry called in English. "Are you guys here?"

He climbed the stairs silently, and at the signal from Buffy, pointed his wand at the gasoline tanks that had been strategically placed around the serpent demon. "Incendio!" He shouted, and the gas lit, exploding into balls of flame.

The demon screeched and hissed, flinging his head side to side in pain. "Good work," Buffy said. The demon snapped its head in their direction and roared.

"Uh-oh, time to go!" Buffy grabbed Harry's wrist and pulled him after her as the demon reached up and snapped his jaws where the two had stood.

"Shouldn't it be dead?" Harry asked as they ran.

"I guess it takes awhile," Buffy panted and stopped, pushing Harry back as the serpent crashed his head down in front of them, glaring and hissing.

"_Tricked me_!" he hissed, his fangs glistening with venom. "_Little ssspeaker mussst die_!"

"Incendio!" Harry shot at the beast's head, making it rear in pain. Buffy ran forward, unsheathing the sword at her belt and thrusting it in one of the eyes.

"Let's go!" Buffy grabbed Harry again and the pair ducked under the swinging head. The stairs were blocked by flame, and Buffy made a split second decision.

Harry shouted in fear and surprise as she dragged him out of the window. They landed painfully on some dumpsters, rolling onto the ground.

Harry looked up to see the warehouse beginning to collapse on itself, flames roaring along with the dying demon. Giles and Oz held a fire hose, and Cordelia, Willow, and Xander were armed with fire extinguishers, effectively containing the fire from spreading.

After what seemed like a few hours, the building had completely collapsed, and the flames were extinguished.

"It worked," Harry said, blinking tiredly.

"That surprised tone makes me feel loads better," Xander commented.

"And what was with that hissing thing?" Cordelia shuddered. "That was extremely creepy!"

"I thought it was neat!" Willow grinned. "It's really cool being able to talk to snakes like that!"

"Also very helpful in case you want to convince it not to eat you," Oz added.

"Yes, well, good job everyone," Giles said.

"Another crisis averted," Buffy stretched. "I'm so ready for bed."

Suddenly, a very burnt, charred serpent demon crashed through the rubble, hissing violently. Harry watched in awe as Buffy drew her sword with a very casual air, strolled up to the beast and thrust it through the demon's bottom jaw and up through the charred, softened flesh of its head. She pulled her sword free and looked at her arm in disgust as green blood trickled onto her coat.

"EW! Demon blood! Great, now I need a shower too," Buffy complained.

Harry was always surprised by Buffy's casual attitude towards demons and vampires, and this was no exception. He seemed to realize something and looked around. "Where's Angel?"

"Angel and fire do not mix," Buffy said.

"Kind of like jelly and mustard," Xander added. Everyone stared at him, incredulous, disgusted looks on their faces. "What, no one else has tried that?"

Harry picked up the book in excitement, flipping open to the first page as fast as he could. Giles had ordered a new shipment of books on dimension traveling, and it had just come in. He looked at the first line and his excitement dimmed. "Giles, this is in Latin."

"Ah, yes, well I'll have to translate that one," Giles took that one away and replaced it with another. "This one should be in English."

"Thanks," Harry started as he always did, flipping through to look at the pictures. While Ron (and most likely Xander) would have done this out of boredom, Harry was looking for a picture of the Veil, which would immediately be a clue that he was on the right track.

Harry was distracted by the picture of an extremely ugly demon. It had three long claws on each hand, and its broad head looked too big for its emaciated, twisted body. Harry shuddered and read the caption.

_"The Quoloth Demon, also known as the World Traveler, uses a complex combination of blood sacrifices and magic to create magical portals to different worlds."_

Harry jumped up, rushing the book over to Giles. "Look, Giles look! This demon could be my way out of here!"

Giles straightened his glasses before reading the page describing the demon. "Yes, well if you can find six young people to volunteer to be drained of their blood and devoured, then, yes, this demon can help you."

Harry's spirits fell. "Oh, guess I should have read a bit more then."

"Quite," Giles handed him back the book with a sympathetic smile on his face. "I'm sorry, Harry."

"It's fine," Harry smiled and sat back down, finishing his scan of the pictures. No veil. He sighed before going back to page one and reading about the history of dimension traveling.

After a few hours, he had made it through most of the book. Hermione would be proud, he thought. I don't think I've ever read so much in my life.

He turned to the next chapter, and looked at the page titled, "The Saldahaar". Harry's eyes widened with each sentence, and he made sure he read all that the book offered on them. Slowly, with all the restraint he could muster, he walked over to Giles and set the book down in front of him, containing his excitement lest he be disappointed again.

"What about this one?" he asked, trying desperately not to get his hopes up.

Giles read through the chapter, which in Harry's mind took far too long. Giles sighed and looked at Harry seriously.

"You read all of this?" he asked.

"Yes," Harry nodded.

Silence followed as Giles processed the information. "Harry, this is extremely dangerous."

"I know, but I thought that it could work," Harry said quickly. "It's the best thing we've seen so far."

"It's also the most perilous," Giles took off his glasses. "Harry, I think we should put that option aside and continue our research elsewhere."

"Why?' Harry looked at the Watcher, fighting back his indignant anger. "This could be my way home!"

"I can't risk it," Giles replied. "Any one of you could be hurt or killed, or worse. This is too big for us."

"How can you just toss it aside?" Harry asked angrily. "Of course it's dangerous! Everything Buffy faces is dangerous. What makes this one so different?"

"This isn't just a physical battle we would be dealing with, Harry," Giles said seriously. "The Saldahaar are not some vampires Buffy can stake! This is a battle that is beyond us, one that can result in serious consequences that none of you are prepared to face."

"I am," Harry retorted.

"You can't know that," Giles shook his head.

"I do! Giles, this is my way home, I know it! You can't just decide that it's too dangerous, and that I—"

"Yes, I can," Giles stood. "I've faced a lot in my lifetime, and I've seen more than you can imagine. You are not ready for this! None of us are."

"You don't know what I've faced," Harry's hands balled into tight fists. "You don't know what I can or cannot handle!"

"The answer is no, Harry," Giles said, a touch of anger and frustration in his voice. "That is my final word on the matter."

The librarian made to go into his office, but Harry wasn't finished. "I don't give a damn about 'your final word'! You can't just forbid me to do something like you're my parent."

"If your father were here, he would say the same thing," Giles replied hotly.

"He's not here!" Harry replied angrily.

"Then I will act in his stead!" Giles stated.

"Giles, you don't understand!" Harry roared in frustration. "I have to go home! I need to go home! I can't waste time trying to find a safer solution!"

"And I can't have you endangering the lives of those I am in charge of!" Giles shouted back, losing his calm exterior. "Damn it, Harry you're children! You can't just go running off to fight something you don't know anything about!"

"I know enough," Harry said, trying to regain some level of calm but failing miserably. "I'm doing this with or without your help!"

"No you're not," Giles's eyes narrowed.

Harry's anger flared. "Don't tell me what to do!"

"I understand you want to go home, Harry, but there are other ways," Giles tried to reason. "You can wait a little longer."

"IF I WAIT A LITTLE LONGER, SIRIUS COULD DIE, IF HE ISN"T DEAD ALREADY!" Harry shouted, breathing heavily. A tense silence followed.

"Who is Sirius, Harry?" Giles asked in a quiet, concerned voice.

Harry had had enough, and if it took telling the truth in order to get Giles to understand, then so be it. "He's my godfather. He's the closest thing to family I've got left," Harry said softly, his anger starting to slip away.

Giles looked at the boy in shock. "Y-your parents?"

"Dead," Harry stated. "Since I was one."

Giles sat down, heavily, rubbing his eyes with his hands. "Why didn't you tell us?"

"I didn't think I would be here this long," Harry answered. "And I didn't want your pity."

"You said he could die?" Giles looked up at him.

"Yes," Harry looked at the man with fear in his eyes. "Look, sometimes I have these dreams, they're more like visions, really. And I might have had one the other night."

"Might?" Giles asked.

"Well, normally my scar hurts when it happens," Harry lifted his fringe to show the Watcher the famous lightning bolt scar. "But this time it didn't, so I don't know if what I saw was real or not."

"And you saw your godfather dying," Giles said softly.

Harry nodded, his throat suddenly thick and his eyes burning. "That's why I have to get out of here as soon as possible. I don't know what happened to him or any of my friends after I left. I don't even know if time passes the same there as it does here. Please, Giles, this could be it."

Giles sighed. "I'm so sorry, Harry. But I can't let you do this, not yet. If it comes to that, then I will do everything I can to help you defeat the Saldahaar, but for now, we need to search for other options."

"So that's it then?" Harry asked in disbelief. "That's your final word?"

"Yes, I'm sorry," Giles said, placing a hand on the boy's shoulder.

"Yeah, me too," Harry muttered. Unlike the Watcher, he wasn't giving up so easily.

"Willow! Hey, Willow!" Harry jogged after the girl down the steps of the high school.

She turned and smiled. "Harry, hi!"

"Hi," Harry smiled. "Look, I was wondering if you could help me."

"With what?" she asked curiously.

"Magic stuff," Harry replied, knowing it would get the girl's attention. True enough, her eyes widened and she broke out into an excited smile.

"OOH! What kind of magic stuff?" Willow asked.

"Well, I thought that you could help me figure it out," Harry took her books from her. "Here, let me carry those. I need to find something, and I'm not sure what kind of spell I would use to do that. I don't know any spells like that and I thought you would."

"Sure!" Willow's eyes brightened. "W-we could do a locater spell! I've never done one, but it says it's really simple."

"Great!" Harry smiled enthusiastically. "That's brilliant."

"Ok, so I'll have to look up the ingredients and the instructions and everything, but I bet I could have everything by tonight," Willow spoke quickly. "I could call you tonight when I have everything and you can come over."

"Won't your parents mind?" Harry asked.

"Oh they're on some business retreat in India," Willow waved her hand.

"Alright, sounds great," Harry paused. "Well this is my stop. Thanks again Willow!"

"No problem!" she took her books, flashed him a smile and walked quickly towards her house.

Harry sighed and watched her retreating figure. He felt a little guilty for using her like this, but it was the only way if Giles wasn't going to help.

"Ok, do you have any, um essence, of the thing you're trying to find?" Willow asked, sitting cross legged on the floor surrounded by numerous vials and jars and an open spell book to her left. "Wait, what are you trying to find?"

"A demon," Harry said. "For Buffy. Giles wanted us to figure out where it's hiding. And all we have is a picture."

He pulled out the torn page from his pocket and handed it to the redhead. "That'll work," Willow laid it in front of her.

With Harry's help, she set four candles in a circle around her. She opened a map of Sunnydale and set it before her. "Ok, are you ready?" Willow asked, breathing heavily.

Harry nodded. Willow took one of his hands and held it. "It should be very simple," she said. With her free hand she took a jar filled with what looked like dirt. She grabbed a handful and sprinkled it onto the picture of the demon.

"Hecate, goddess of magic and sorcery, I pray to thee," she chanted, now pouring red powder over the picture. "I summon thee, Hecate, to find what is lost. Reveal to us, your servants, where we might find what is lost. Aperio pravus."

Harry watched with interest at this almost savage ritual, noticing that in his world, spells were not nearly so extensive, and they didn't need to call on goddesses in order to use their magic. He was doubtful that it would work, but held onto the hope that it might.

Harry gasped in surprise as a pale light, very dim at first, brightened over one spot on the map. "There," he breathed, his eyes wide.

"It worked!" Willow laughed excitedly."Wow, that is so cool!"

"Yeah it is!" Harry smiled. "Thanks, Willow! This is perfect!"

"Buffy's demon is in Miller's Woods," Willow noticed. "It's not far in, should be easy to find. I'll call Buffy."

"No need," Harry jumped up. "I-uh-I was planning on telling Giles first. I was meeting him at the library anyways."

Willow looked disappointed. "Ok, but make sure you tell them that I did an amazing locater spell."

"Will do!" Harry headed out. "Thanks again!"

"His parents are dead?" Buffy asked, shocked and horrified. "Oh my god, that's terrible! Why didn't he tell us?"

"He didn't want us to pity him," Giles sighed.

"It's understandable," Angel said. "I wouldn't want to share my past with strangers either."

"How did he respond to you telling him no?" Buffy winced, anticipating his reaction.

"To say he wasn't pleased would be an understatement," Giles sighed.

"Hey guys," Willow walked in the library. She stopped and frowned at Buffy. "What are you doing here?"

"Am I not supposed to be?" Buffy asked, confused.

"Aren't you supposed to be slaying your demon?" Willow asked.

"What demon?" Buffy asked.

Angel and Giles exchanged worried looks.

"The one I just found with my locater spell," Willow answered, then her smile got even bigger. "I did a locater spell, Buffy! It was amazing!"

"Willow, what demon?" Buffy looked worried.

"I don't know the name," Willow pulled out the picture. "But Harry gave me this to use for the spell."

Giles rushed forward and took the paper, his face paling when he saw it. "Dear God. He's gone after it."

"He wouldn't!" Buffy looked at Giles, frightened.

"He would," Angel looked at her seriously. "We have to get to him before he gets to the demon."

"We have to hurry. Willow, how far of a head start do you think he has?" Buffy asked quickly.

A still confused Willow answered, "I don't know, maybe forty five minutes?"

"Let's go," Buffy said, grabbing a sword and a crossbow. "Giles, fill me in on this demon on the way there."

Angel and Giles grabbed weapons, following Buffy. "Willow, stay here!" Giles ordered.

"O-okay," she said as she stared after them with wide, fearful eyes.

Harry stepped quietly into the woods, his breath visible in white puffs. He gripped his wand tightly and scanned the area.

The logical part of his brain, which sounded an awful lot like Hermione, was telling him that he was being an idiot, that he should turn back now and listen to Giles. But Harry refused. He was beyond rash thinking, all that was left was desperation. He had to know if Sirius was alright, if the others were ok, and this demon was his only chance. At least, that's what he had convinced himself.

There was no way he was going to stand by and not know whether his friends, no, his family was alright. He didn't care if what he was doing was reckless and dangerous. _Just like your trip the Department of Mysteries? _Hermione's voice reminded him, and his stomach fell.

_That's different_, he convinced himself.

_That was to save Sirius_, she argued. _And what are you doing now? Harry, think about it! Giles is right! You're going to get yourself killed._

_So what?_ He shot back. _Hermione, this is my only chance to get back to you guys, and I'm not giving it up._

_Can't you hear yourself?_ She begged him to see reason. _The only chance? Harry, you don't know that! Please, please turn back. You can't fight this thing, it will kill you!_

Harry stopped and sighed, shutting his eyes. He thought about what Giles had said, and what he had just heard. Hermione, or, rather his own mind, was right. What was he doing, running off to the middle of the woods alone, armed with only his wand, ready to fight a demon he didn't know that much about? He cursed. Yes, he wanted desperately to go home, but he was being stupid. His scar hadn't hurt after that nightmare, so it couldn't have been a vision. His mind made up, Harry turned around.

"Harry? Where are you going?" a familiar voice asked. A deep, chilling cold settled in his bones, and he could have sworn that he was surrounded by dementors. He turned around, slowly, his eyes wide.

"Dad?" he asked in disbelief. His father stood there, a warm smile on his face.

"Hey there, kiddo," James smiled.

"This is impossible," Harry shook his head. "You can't be real."

"This is a different dimension Harry," his father argued. "You've seen for yourself how different the magic is. The rules are different here. I'm real."

Harry didn't want to believe it, but found the warmth of hope stirring in his chest. Then, with a sinking realization, he remembered the words from the book he had read.

_"The Saldahaar work in many ways to destroy their victim. They will appear as apparitions in order to trick and torture the victim's mind. The visions they force on them will drive the victim insane. Though they seem to be ghostlike and transparent, they have no difficulties inflicting physical pain on their victim."_

Harry stepped back, his wand pointed at his 'father'. "Stay away from me."

"Harry?" James looked hurt. "Kiddo, lower your wand, it's me, I swear it."

"Stop it!" Harry shouted. "You're not him. Leave me alone."

James cocked his head. "But you came looking for me, son."

"I didn't," Harry shook his head, edging backwards. "Stay back."

Harry made a split second decision and turned and ran back the way he had came. He stopped and almost lost his balance as Sirius stood in front of him, his arms spread in a wide hug.

"Harry! You're alive!" Sirius looked overjoyed.

Harry pointed his wand at the 'ghost'. Sirius frowned. "Harry?"

"Stay away from me!" Harry cried. This was a huge mistake. He never should have come here! "Stupefy!"

His godfather crumpled to the ground and Harry ran on. Suddenly, an intense pain shot up and down his spine, twisting every nerve in his body. He fell to the ground, writhing in pain and biting his lip to keep from screaming.

"Harry, Harry, Harry," a soft voice hissed. "I would have thought you'd be used to the cruciatus curse by now."

Harry opened his eyes, struggling not to cry out from the horrible pain. Voldemort loomed over him, a twisted grin on his snake like face. "Did you miss me, Harry?"

The curse was released, and Harry panted in pain. "You're-not-him," he breathed.

Voldemort laughed. "Of course I am, Harry. It was all too easy to slaughter your friends and step through the veil to finish the job myself. Crucio!"

Harry's body convulsed under the weight of the pain. After what seemed like hours, the curse had stopped. Harry opened his eyes and gasped in horror.

The forest was littered with bodies, all bloodied and torn. Harry stumbled to his feet, crying out as he saw who they were. Ron, Hermione, Sirius, his parents, the Weasley's, Cedric, everyone he had befriended and loved lay on the ground, eyes staring at him lifelessly.

"No! Oh God, no!" Harry couldn't move. He flinched as the pale long hand grasped his shoulder.

"Oh yes," Voldemort hissed in his ear. "And it's all because of you, Harry. Had you not gone through the veil, I wouldn't have had the chance to kill them all."

Harry shook his head, closing his eyes. "This isn't real! You're not real! You're just a demon trying to trick me."

He heard a soft moan of pain and opened his eyes, gasping. Ginny Weasley stirred, her face contorted in pain. "Harry?" she whispered softly, tears falling down her pale cheeks.

Harry ran to her side, forgetting what he was dealing with. "Ginny!"

"It would seem I had missed one," Voldemort mused, looming over the pair. Harry got to his feet, stepping in front of the girl and pointing his wand at Voldemort and glaring.

"Stay the hell away from her, you sick bastard!" he shouted. "_Stupefy! Expelliarmus! Reducto!"_

He fired spell after spell, but it passed harmlessly through the Dark Lord's robes. Voldemort raised his wand and Harry's fell to the forest floor. "_Avada Kedavra_!" he hissed, smiling, and Harry braced himself for death.

Ginny cried out behind him and he turned, watching in horror as the green light passed through him and hit her. "NO!" he fell to his knees, clutching the cold hand. "Ginny, Ginny wake up!"

"She won't wake," Voldemort said behind him. Harry shut his eyes in remembrance.

"No. She's not dead. This is just a vision," he tried to convince himself, but the pain was overwhelming, as was the evidence.

Tears fell down Harry's face, and he could do nothing to stop them. He looked up, but Voldemort was gone. He looked down again, and Ginny was no longer there. Everyone had disappeared, leaving him alone in the blackness.

Harry got to his feet, running blindly through the dark. "Ginny!"

He fell forward, and when he looked up, he was surrounded by giant hedges inside the maze from the third task. Harry sat back, holding back a cry of frustration.

"This isn't real. This isn't real," he kept chanting, but a sense of hopelessness and pain overcame him. "Please, someone help me."

"Oh my God, Harry!" he heard a familiar voice call, but he didn't look up. Harry felt a hand squeeze his arm, and he flinched.

"Harry, are you alright?" he looked up into Buffy's worried face.

"Buffy! Is it really you?" he asked in disbelief.

"Yes, oh god, are you ok?" she asked worriedly. Her head snapped up. "We have to get out of here, now!"

Harry got to his feet and followed the Slayer, relief flooding his being. Buffy could fight the demon, and they would be alright!

"Through here!" Buffy ran through a door that suddenly appeared.

"Buffy, wait!" Harry ran after her, and the door slammed shut behind him. It was completely dark.

He heard the sound of scraping metal and froze. "Buffy?"

Harry cried out as a sword scraped his arm. Light flooded the room, and Buffy faced him, a bloody sword in her hands. "You didn't think I would let you escape that easy, did you?'

She swung forward, and Harry stumbled back. He reached for his wand, but realized it wasn't there. Buffy swung, thrust, and stabbed expertly with the blade, and Harry tried his best to dodge. He bumped into a wall, and his hand felt the handle of a sword. He picked it up and swung it in front of him just as Buffy swung down. Their blades met with a crack and sparks flew.

Harry shouted and pushed the Slayer back. "Buffy, stop!"

The Slayer glared. "Why should I? You're the reason my friends are dead!"

She roared and charged at him. Harry ducked to the side and pulled the sword up, blocking another would be fatal blow from the Slayer.

He was exhausted, and his body shook with pain leftover from the cruciatus curse, but he fought on. He was clumsy, and could barely hold his own against the powerful, angry girl.

She kicked him in the chest, and he went sprawling to the ground, his weapon clattering away from his hand.

Buffy stomped violently on Harry's chest, and Harry cried out in pain as one of his ribs broke. She put the sword to his throat.

"You aren't going to fight back any more, because you know you deserve this," she said in a low, dangerous voice. "You are the reason all your friends back in your world are dead, just like you are the reason mine are. You're no better than the demons I fight everyday. And I'm the Slayer. It's my job to make sure you don't hurt anyone else ever again."

Harry watched in horror and despair as she lifted the sword and brought it down.

**Well, there you go readers! Another chapter. Thanks personally to "Blah" **** who helped me hopefully get on the right track and who inspired this chapter. I also want to say how much I appreciate those of who left wonderful, inspiring reviews that always made my day. Thanks to those who gave me constructive criticism instead of simply saying the story sucked. ;) I read each and every review, and would love to get some more feedback. Thank you all for reading! **

**Coming up Next: What happened to Harry? Was that really Buffy, or will the real one come to save him in time? And what is Spike up to? Find out next chapter in Harry Potter and the Trip to Sunnyhell!! **


	10. Chapter 10: The Aftermath

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything Harry Potter or Buffy**

"Buffy!" Angel shouted, calling the Slayer over to where he crouched. He stood and handed her what he found, a grim look on his face.

"His wand," Giles breathed, staring at the piece of wood in fear and picked it up, placing it in his pocket.

"We have to find him," Buffy said determinedly.

"I can smell his scent, but its faint," Angel commented.

"Can you find a trail?" Buffy asked.

Angel took a few steps in a couple different directions, his eyes closed in concentration. "It's here," he said slowly jogging in the direction of Harry's smell.

"Do you think he's alive, Giles?" Buffy asked in a low, worried voice.

"I have no doubt of it," Giles said, receiving a strange look from Buffy. "The Saldahaar do not kill their victims right away. They are tortured first, both mentally and physically. The question you should be asking is if he is still sane."

Buffy shuddered. "How do I kill it?"

"I-I'm not sure," Giles said. "The volume didn't specify, and I didn't have time to study it in depth. My best guess would be decapitation. But Buffy-"

He pulled the Slayer aside and paused. "This demon creates visions that are very real in order to torture people. It is very dangerous, and you must concentrate in order to look past the illusions. Otherwise…" he trailed off.

Buffy nodded. "I understand, Giles."

The two followed the vampire, who had quickened his pace. "There!" he cried suddenly, but Buffy could see nothing. The three burst out into a sprint, and from a distance, Buffy could see a figure huddled on the ground.

"Harry!" Angel knelt next to the unconscious boy, laying a gentle hand on his shoulder. He gasped as his hand went through the boy and he vanished.

"It's a fake!" Angel stood up as the others caught up.

Buffy tightened her grip on her sword as a deep, rumbling laughter filled the clearing. "Where are you?" she shouted. "What have you done with Harry?"

"Harry's a little busy right now," a voice said behind them, and they whirled around. Buffy gasped in surprise, but her eyes narrowed.

"Hello, Buffy," Joyce Summers smiled at them. "Giles, Angel."

"Stop it," Buffy glared at the demon that dared to take the form of her mother. "We're not playing your games."

"Buffy, that's enough, it's time to go home," Joyce beckoned. "Come on, sweetheart."

"Buffy, remember what I told you," Giles whispered. "Concentrate, and you can see past the illusion."

Joyce's head snapped up as she glared at the Watcher. "It's not nice to tell secrets, Mr. Giles."

Giles suddenly held his head, crying out in pain and falling to his knees. "Giles!" Buffy shouted and ran at her mother, her sword raised high. At the last second, after looking into her mother's fearful face, she hesitated. Angel didn't. He punched the apparition, but his hand went right through.

"You can see me, can't you Angel?" Joyce smiled. "I never could fool vampires."

With a single look from Buffy's mother, Angel went flying back into a tree. Joyce held a hand out to her daughter. "Come on, Buffy, let's go home."

Buffy stared at her with wide eyes. It looked and sounded just like her mother, and she almost believed it was. Concentrate, she ordered herself, and her eyes narrowed. She breathed slowly, in and out, focusing on seeing the demon for what it is. Even as she focused, the image of her smiling mother began to flicker.

"Buffy, stop!" Joyce cried, "You're hurting me, please Buffy!"

The image flickered again, and this time it was Willow. "Buffy? What are you doing? Why are you doing this? Please, stop it!"  
Buffy brought up her sword as the image disappeared and in its place was a two headed gray demon with six red eyes. It roared at her. "You can't defeat me!"  
"How many times have I heard that one?" Buffy rolled her eyes.

The demon moved with sudden agility, and she was backhanded, her body flying backwards.

Angel ran at the demon, able to punch one of its faces before its claws sliced into his chest. The vampire crumpled and held his head much the same way Giles did, hissing in pain. Buffy jumped to her feet and charged at the demon, but she was swatted aside before she knew what was happening.

"This is getting old, really fast," she winced, holding a hand to her ribs.

"Why even try, Slayer?" one head taunted with Xander's voice.

"You'll only fail again," Cordelia's cold voice said, coming out of the second head.

"Like you always do," this time it was Jenny Calendar's voice.

"You talk too much," Buffy kicked upwards, hitting one head in the chin. "And you, you're just ugly!"

She swung her sword, but the demon was too fast, though it didn't escape unscathed. One of its hands went flying, and it screeched in pain.

Buffy winced as a pain in her head erupted and almost immobilized her. She jumped back as it swiped its claws at her.

Her sword was knocked out of her hand, and she was kicked to the ground. The Saldahaar pinned her to the ground, snarling.

"Buffy!" Giles called out through his pain.

"Poor Slayer," a head hissed.

"She's about to die again," the other nodded. "And this time she won't come back. You're a failure, and you can't even protect your friends."

"Look around," the first said, and Buffy watched it with wide eyes. "Angel and Giles are suffering because of you."

"Harry is suffering because you didn't watch him," said the second. "And how long will it be before Willow and Xander die?"

"Or Cordelia and Oz?"

"Or your mother?"

"All because of you."

"Your failures."

With a cry of anger, Buffy whipped out a stake, stabbing it into the demon's heart. It fell on its back, screeching. "Foolish girl, we cannot be defeated like this!"

"How about this, then?" a voice asked, and a sword came swinging down, chopping off both the demon's heads in one swift blow.

Buffy looked up in disbelief. "Harry!"

The boy wizard looked terrible. He was pale, cut all over, with bruises covering his body. It looked like his arm was broken, and he was trembling as he gasped for air.

Giles caught the boy as he fell, swinging him up in his arms. Buffy and Angel got to their feet.

"Is he going to be ok?" Buffy looked at him worriedly.

"He'll be alright," Angel looked at him. "We need to get him to a hospital."

"How is he?" Willow asked, walking into the hospital room hand in hand with Oz. Giles, Xander, and Buffy were watching Harry, who was currently unconscious.

"Physically, the doctors say he as a broken arm and rib, some cuts and bruises, and a bit of damage to his nerves," Giles sighed. "Mentally, we're not sure yet. We won't know anything until he wakes up."

"Oh God," Xander looked at the boy sympathetically.

"It's a good thing you got there when you did," Willow told Buffy. "It could be a lot worse."

Buffy didn't respond, but stared at Harry sadly. In a way, the demon had been right. She should have paid more attention to the boy wizard. She should have asked more questions. She should have protected him.

Giles seemed to know what she was thinking. "Buffy, this isn't your fault. If anything, it's mine."

"How can you say that?" she asked. "I'm the Slayer. I should've seen this coming. I should've stopped it sooner. Then none of this would have happened. I should have been paying attention."

"And I should've kept Harry from leaving the library," Giles pointed out. "I should've talked him down instead of letting him leave emotionally upset. I should've prevented this. It is my fault."

"Quit being stupid. It's not anyone's fault but mine," a soft voice whispered.

Everyone jumped in surprise as they saw Harry's emerald eyes open.

"Harry, how are you feeling?" Giles asked anxiously.

Harry shrugged, then winced at the pain the small movement caused. "I'm fine."

After receiving a room full of doubtful looks, he amended, "Alright, I've been a lot better."

"Are you in a lot of pain? Should we call the nurse?" Willow asked worriedly.

"No," Harry shook his head. "It's ok."

"He doesn't sound insane," Xander said hopefully. Everyone turned to glare at him. "What?" he asked. "Someone had to say it."

"Very subtle," Oz remarked.

Harry looked to Giles for an explanation. "Well," began the Watcher. "After what you experienced, we weren't sure if-well…"

"You'd gone completely crazy," Xander supplied helpfully. More glares followed. "I'll just shut up."

A tense silence followed. "I'm glad you're ok," Willow smiled, trying to lighten the mood.

Harry tried to smile back, but failed miserably. A thought suddenly occurred to him. "Giles, the demon-"he began hopefully.

Giles shook his head sadly. Buffy spoke softly. "After we took you to the hospital, Angel went back to get its blood, but the body had disappeared."

"You mean that thing's alive?" Willow asked fearfully,

"No," Buffy said. "Someone or something removed the body. There's no way it could still be alive."

"So it was all for nothing," Harry fixed his eyes on his bed.

At a meaningful look from Giles, Buffy led Willow, Oz, and Xander to the door. "Come on guys, let's go get some coffee."

"But I don't want—oh," Xander caught her meaning.

"Bye Harry!" Willow waved as she left. "We'll be back later!"

Giles took the seat next to Harry's bed. Harry refused to look up. Giles sighed.

"I'm sorry-" they both said suddenly. Giles looked at Harry seriously. "You have nothing to be sorry for."

"Nothing to be sorry for?" Harry echoed incredulously. "Giles, I yelled at you, I ran off without thinking, and I almost got myself and the rest of you killed. I have everything to be sorry for."

"Harry, you did what you thought was right," Giles took his hand in a fatherly gesture. "You were desperate to get back to your family so that you could protect them, and no one blames you for that. While I agree that your actions were rash and foolish, you had good intentions. I'm just glad we got there in time."

"How can you say that?" Harry struggled to hold back his emotions. "Buffy could have died. You could have died! And it was all because I wanted to go home."

"Do you know how many times one of us has rushed off into a dangerous situation without thinking?" Giles asked, smiling. "It's happened more times that I care to admit. No one blames you."

Harry angrily wiped away a traitorous tear that had slipped down his cheek. Giles suddenly swept him up in a soft hug, and Harry was reminded of Mrs. Weasley's embrace after the triwizard tournament. He tensed at first, but relaxed into the hug. After a few moments, Giles pulled back, slightly embarrassed at the emotional action.

"Thank you," Harry said quietly.

Giles smiled, but grew serious once more. "Harry, I'm not going to make you relive what happened right away, but you are going to need to talk to someone," Giles held up a hand as Harry began to protest. "You went through a terrible ordeal, and it will only get worse if you don't talk about it, whether it is me or someone else."

Harry nodded in understanding, though he wasn't happy about it.

Spike looked up from his meal and stared at the newcomers with distaste. "It's rude to interrupt someone when they're eating you know."

The three fledgling vampires watched his meal with apparent hunger. One spoke up. "Forgive us. We've come because we heard about your mission to defeat the Slayer. We want in."

"Is that right?" Spike stood, tossing the body of the girl aside. He shifted out of his game face. "And why should I let you in?"

"We have information," the middle one said.

"What kind of information?" Spike asked, cocking his head curiously.

"The boy that has recently joined the Slayer," the vampire began. "He isn't from around here."

Spike waited for more, but he was met with silence. "And?" he asked irritably. "What the bloody hell is that supposed to mean?"

"It means he's from a different dimension," it replied. "That's why he smells so different, so powerful."

Spike watched as the middle vampire pushed the nervous looking one forward. "Tell him what you know."

He glanced at the master vampire in apprehension. "Not too long ago, a few of us were looking for an easy meal when we smelled him. When we went after him, the Slayer attacked us. My buddy Jack was able to bite the kid, and it was incredible, like he had just drained a Slayer. He was a lot more powerful than normal, from only a few swallows, until she staked him. He put up a good fight though, and Jack was horrible at combat. I got out of there before the Slayer saw me."

Spike looked interested. He smiled dangerously. "Well, my friends, it looks like I'll be able to use this to my advantage."

The nervous one sighed in relief. Spike whipped out a stake and stabbed the vampire in front of him, watching indifferently as he turned into dust. The other two fledglings stepped back, looking afraid.

"That's what will happen to both of you if you double cross me to save your own hides. I don't take on cowards for my minions. Got it?" Spike stared the two down.

They nodded nervously. Spike smiled. "Good. Looks like we're all going to get along then. It's time to get to work. The Slayer won't know what hit her."

**Another chapter. Sorry it isn't as long as last time. Thanks again to everyone who takes the time to leave me reviews! I'm always welcome to new ideas and your creative input of course, and it makes my day every time I get a wonderful review. Let me know what you think! And it might be awhile before my next chapter, because school is almost out and I am really busy. Chao!  
Queen**


	11. Author's Note

Dear Readers,

I know I have not updated in a very, very long time. There are many reasons for this, but let me just say that I have lost my inspiration, and I am not altogether happy with what I have so far. I do not want to abandon the story, as I always hate it when that happens to my favorite stories, but I will have to put the story on hold. I think that when I do go back to this story, I will start with a rewrite, make my old story better, then add on from there.

I am so sorry to do this to you guys, I know it sucks, but I don't feel this story anymore. So eventually I will be doing a rewrite of the Sunnyhell story. In the meantime, I have a few ideas floating around in my head that I might just write out for you.

Sorry again, and I want to thank each and everyone of you who submitted a review or who added my story to you alert/favorite story lists. I love you all so much, and your feedback has made me feel so amazing. Thanks readers, and I'll try to upload some stuff soon.

Love,

Queen


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